


Starting Over From the End

by ChelsaOfBakerStreet



Category: Glee
Genre: Broadway, Future Fic, M/M, Phantom of the Opera - Freeform, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-09
Updated: 2012-05-09
Packaged: 2017-11-05 01:19:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 63,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/400869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChelsaOfBakerStreet/pseuds/ChelsaOfBakerStreet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five years after graduation, Kurt is still heartbroken after his break-up with Blaine. They get a chance to retry romance when Blaine is cast in the same Broadway musical as Kurt.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In the Beginning

… _You make me/Feel like a/Teenage dream…_

Kurt awoke to the music with a start. He looked around the room trying to place where he was. He groggily rubbed his eyes after realizing he was in bed at his apartment and the radio alarm was going off. As his racing heartbeat stilled, he cursed Katy Perry for writing that song and making him think he was back in his Dalton dorm room. He closed his eyes as the memories washed over him.

" _Next time remember your jacket new kid," Blaine said smiling, while smoothing down Kurt's collar. Blaine and the rest of the Warblers then broke into a spontaneous rendition of "Teenage Dream". Kurt just stared at Blaine as he sang, looking straight at Kurt._

Kurt shook his head to stave away the memories. Blaine. The one person he thought he really loved. The one person who hurt him more than anyone else ever had. Kurt groaned as he attempted to roll out of bed and get on with his day. It never helped to remember Blaine, it just made his whole day bad.

~U~

"Hey Kurt! Kurt? KURT!" Marcus, Kurt's understudy, was trying to get his attention.

"Wha- oh sorry Marcus, what's going on?"

"It's almost time to start running lines and figure out stage positions and you aren't even in costume yet!"

"Ugh, I don't understand why Andrea insists on practicing in costume!"

Kurt quickly pulled on his tuxedo and mask. How "The Phantom of the Opera" became the number one selling show on Broadway again, he just didn't know. He leaned over to borrow a q-tip from Alyssa, the actress playing Christine. "Did you hear?" she asked.

"Hear what?" Kurt asked while finishing up his moisturizing routine.

"Daniel fell and broke his leg, he won't be able to play Raoul."

"Oh, wow, who is his understudy again?"

"Damon. Someone told me that he's even better looking than Daniel." Alyssa winked and giggled at Kurt.

"Shhh! No one else needs to know." Kurt hissed while playfully smacking her arm.

"Oh darling," Alyssa drawled, "if they haven't figured you out then they all must be dumb, blind and deaf!"

_Think of me, think of me fondly_

_When we've said goodbye_

_Remember me once in a while_

_Promise me you'll try_

Alyssa's strong soprano rang across the theater. Kurt felt tears welling up in his eyes as he remembered the thoughts of the morning that began invading his mind again.

" _I love you Kurt, more than anything else in the world, you, you are my world." Kurt just stared, his mouth slighty open "Blaine, I've w-w-waited forever to hear that." He hated how emotional he sounded, words sticking in his throat. "Well," Blaine said while running a hand through Kurt's hair, "you don't have to wait any longer."_

Kurt broke the memory off there. Better to remember the happy times than the sad his father always said. He needed to call his parents, see how they are doing. Ask how Finn was liking being at UCLA. He seemed to be getting so wrapped up in his thoughts and work lately that he didn't have time for anyone, including himself.

Kurt sat by the window of his apartment looking out over Central Park with his cellphone tucked under his chin. "So then she asked me on a date! Weird right?" Mercedes laughter then came spilling out of the phone.

"You told her you were gay right?" Mercedes managed to get out between bursts.

"Well, yes of course. I didn't need another rock through my windshield." Kurt could almost hear Mercedes blush on the other side of the phone.

"Hey, let's not start on that again ok?"

"Sorry, you know I find it amusing now!" Kurt laughed trying to imagine the look on Mercedes face.

"Yeah yeah, I'll send my bodyguard to beat you up."

"Just because you're a famous singer who has their own Vegas show doesn't mean you have to threaten your biggest fan!"

"Haha I know. So how are things out on Broadway going?"

"Well, I  _am_ playing the Phantom in "The Phantom of the Opera."

"Wow Kurt, that's great! Are Burt and Carole coming to watch?"

"Uh, well, I don't know, I haven't really talked to them in like a month…"

"And why not? Just because you're a big Broadway star, doesn't mean you forget about your family!"

"Calm down Mercedes ok? I'm going to call them when I get off the phone with you."

"You talk to me at least once a week! Get off the phone with me and call them!"

"Yes  _mom._ I'll call you soon ok?"

"Ok. Miss you! Break a leg, well, you know what I mean."

"I know. And you keep killing them out there Miss Aretha! Bye!"

"Bye!"

Kurt hung up from his conversation with Mercedes and took a big gulp of breath. His hand began shaking as he dialed the number that went all the way to Lima, Ohio.

"Hello?" Carole's voice answered after the second ring.

"Car-uh mom? Hey its Kurt."

"Kurt darling is that you? Here hold on let me go get your father!"

"Uh you don't-" Kurt began protesting but realized the phone had already been put down.

"Kurt?" Burt's deep voice came spilling through the earpiece of Kurt's iPhone.

"Um, hey dad, what's up?"

"Nothing much around here. Just the same old Lima, you know."

"Finn's getting all A's at UCLA!" Carol interjected.

"Oh that's great! What classes is he taking?" Kurt asked.

"Well, a few English classes and a couple music theory classes."

"Hmm, well I never would have thought Finn to be the one to go for a teaching degree."

Burt went on to say, "well we think he might be trying to be like Mr. Schuester. You know? Teacher and Glee Club head."

Kurt smiled thinking about his step-brother in Glee Club. "Well eight years ago he was the main soloist of New Directions. It suits him."

"Yeah, so uh, how are things in New York? Carole and I miss you."

Kurt knew that that wasn't easy for Burt to admit. "Well, I did land the role of the Phantom in "The Phantom of the Opera!"

"That's wonderful honey!" Carole exclaimed.

"Well, I was wondering if you and dad would like to come see it opening night? I mean, I'll fly you out and you can stay here with me and everything!"

"Are you sure honey? We don't want to be a burden on you."

"Mom really, I want you to be there. This is my big breakout, I can feel it."

"Well then of course! We'll be there!"

"Ok!" Kurt said smiling. "It's the 14th of April!"

After saying their goodbyes, Kurt hung up the phone smiling. He made a mental note to call home more often. He sat down to finish his dinner that was now starting to get cold. He stretched, put the dishes in the dishwasher, and headed to the bedroom. After finishing his moisturizing routine he crawled under the covers and closed his eyes.

~U~

" _Can you help me practice this song? I have to do it and I want it to sound good." Blaine looked at Kurt pleadingly. "Well, anything to keep me from reading history!" he laughed while Blaine turned on the boom box he brought with him. The tinkling of piano keys came out as Kurt recognized the beginning strains of "Baby, It's Cold Outside". The two performed it flawlessly and Kurt couldn't help but to wish that they were really singing it to each other._

Kurt shook himself from the dream. Those days were over. He and Blaine were over. It was fun while it lasted, but it left Kurt hurt and broken in the end. Why the memories kept coming in the form of almost nightmares, he didn't understand. He just wanted to forget about the curly haired boy he had loved for years, the one who broke his heart by ending them right before they graduated high school. Five years had gone by yet he still couldn't get the boy out of his head.

~U~

Kurt walked into makeup the next morning wearing sunglasses to cover the bags under his eyes. He heard what seemed to be a familiar voice singing lightly from somewhere backstage. Lines from "The Mirror" also known as "Music of the Night-Reprise" were being sung softly. Damon must be practicing early, Kurt thought to himself.

He finished in makeup, his mask secure on the left side of his face. Andrea, the stage manager had gathered everyone for a quick cast meeting. "We all know that Daniel broke his leg and Damon is now our Raoul. I just wanted to introduce our new Raoul understudy."

Kurt didn't need Andrea to finish telling everyone who it was. His heart dropped into his stomach, while speeding up somehow at the same time. His hands started shaking and a light sweat broke out. There, walking from behind the stage curtain was none other than Blaine Anderson.


	2. The Phantom and His Memories

"Hello everyone! I'm Blaine Anderson. I'm really glad I get to work on this musical with you. I've been a huge fan of the musical since my ex introduced it to me."

Kurt felt an emotion he couldn't quite place. Anger mixed with sadness and a hint of resentment. Then Blaine's words sunk in. Kurt almost opened his mouth to tell them that in fact, _he_ was the one who introduced Blaine to "Phantom" and how incredulous it was that Blaine had never seen it. Then he remembered that he and Blaine were no longer together, hence the ex. Kurt quickly glanced up, trying to find Blaine again, lost from the conversation. His eyes swept the room and he saw Blaine shaking hands with Alyssa who was beaming proudly. Andrea was telling Blaine that Alyssa was playing Christine and how she had a wonderful soprano voice. Andrea then introduced Blaine to Josh, who was playing the part of Firmin. Kurt was scared. He wanted to run in the other direction. He wanted to be back at home in his safe bed and stay there until Blaine was gone. He knew Blaine hadn't recognized him, how could he with a mask covering half his face? Part of Kurt was dejected by this thought though, shouldn't his ex-boyfriend, ex- _lover_  remember his face? Kurt was so lost he barely realized that Andrea was moving towards him, with Blaine on her arm. "And here is our lovely Phantom." Andrea was telling Blaine while gesturing towards Kurt. "He's a bit picky and quite a bit of a diva, but we love him anyway."

A smile lit up Blaine's face. "Haha, that reminds me of my ex-boyfriend!" Kurt swallowed hard. How was he going to get through this? All of his nightmares were coming true. Andrea grabbed Kurt by the hand and he knew he was going to have to face this. "Blaine Anderson, I'd like you to meet our star, Kurt Hummel."

Blaine kept smiling and grasped Kurt's hand. For a second Kurt thought Blaine had forgotten him completely, and his heart shattered. All of a sudden a look of sudden recognition crossed Blaine's face. "Wha-KURT?" Blaine dropped the soft hand he was holding and took a couple steps back.

"Do you boys know each other already?" Andrea asked watching the scene before her.

"Yes" was their answer.

Kurt cleared his throat and felt as if he were about to jump off a cliff. "Hello Blaine, congratulations on getting the understudy for Raoul."

Blaine looked at Kurt, slightly taken aback. "Um, thanks, congrats on making the lead!" Blaine sent Kurt one of his heart-melting smiles. Kurt almost fell for it, much like when they were at Dalton together. Dalton. He had almost suppressed all of those memories completely. From the morning coffee trips, to the impromptu singing sessions, everything at Dalton was close to wonderful.

" _You know if we didn't have class I would just sit here and kiss you all day," Blaine said while running his hand through Kurt's hair. "Oh Blaine, I never knew you were such a romantic guy." "Kurt, how could you forget that horribly romantic moment gone wrong in the Gap?" "Oh yes, Jonathan? Jerry? James? Whoever it was, that was one of your low points I'm guessing." Kurt bare suppressed a grin as he said the words. Blaine attempted to look at him crossly. "Hmm laugh at meal you want Kurt, but now you'll be the one being serenaded in public." "Oh you wouldn't!" "Watch me!" Blaine playfully pinned Kurt to the bed and pressed a kiss to his lips. "You better keep an eye open while you sleep or else I'll sing to you!" Kurt laughed at the devilish grin on his boyfriend's face._

"Kurt? Hey, are you ok?"

Kurt was pulled from his memory by the same voice that haunted his dreams. "Um, yeah, sorry I, uh, go off when I'm thinking about the musical. You know me." He attempted a laugh, but it came out more as a whimper.

"Kurt? You do realize you just called yesterday right?" Mercedes held the phone wondering what had gotten into her best friend.

"Mercedes, he-he's back." Kurt was so upset about Blaine's sudden reappearance in his life he couldn't even talk straight.

Mercedes sat up on the bed. "Who's back?" Realization dawned on her. "It's not Blaine is it?"

"Y-y-yes," hiccupped Kurt, his eyes brimming with tears. "He's an u-understudy with us."

"Oh, Kurt, I'm so so sorry!" Mercedes could hear how much Kurt was holding back. "Kurt, shhhh it's ok. If you want to cry you can. You deserve it; you were so strong when he did what he did."

"But 'Cedes, it still hurts. I still dream of him almost every night. Sometimes the dreams are happy, sometimes I wake up crying, feeling like my heart's been ripped out all over again."

Mercedes wished she could hug Kurt through the phone. "Kurt, as much as it hurts, maybe you should just try and become friends with him. It's been almost five years; you've both matured a lot I'm betting."

Kurt laughed. "Yeah and what if we become friends and when the show is over we go our separate ways and I'm left empty handed once again?"

"Don't invest yourself darling. Just be his friend. "

"Well Mercedes, I can't say I remember many times when you were wrong, but this will be hard, he'll have to earn my trust, if he even wants it."

Kurt finished his bedtime routine and then sat on the edge of the bed. He pulled out the nightstand drawer and grabbed the bottle that lay in there. It was a prescription he had gotten when the dreams first began. Carole had gotten worried and had taken him to see a doctor. He told Dr. Weitz that he had nightmares and couldn't sleep. Mercedes was the only person who knew what exactly these nightmares consisted of. The doctor gave him these pills for the rough nights; Kurt had a feeling that tonight would be one of those. He popped two of the little red pills and swallowed them down with a gulp of water.

_Kurt stood outside Dalton, only one more week and he'd be graduating. Strong arms wrapped around him and a deep voice sounded in his ear. "Can you believe we made it?" Kurt turned around and stared into the soft brown eyes looking at him. He gave Blaine a small peck on the lips and whispered in his ear, "can you believe WE made it this far?" Blaine simply smiled and kissed him in return. "I love you, you know that right? No matter what I love you." Kurt sighed contently. "Love you too Blaine. Even though I've said it a thousand times, I mean it. I. Love. You."_

Kurt woke up with a start. He let the memory, and the emotions that came with it, flood through him. A week before graduation and everything was great. He had hoped that they would graduate and move to New York. Kurt had already landed a small role in an off Broadway musical. It may have been small, but it was the beginning to his career. He figured that Blaine would be happy and willingly move with him, ready to spend their life together forever. Boy how he ended up being so wrong.

"OK everyone, places for the big "Track Down This Murderer" musical number!" Andrea was yelling at everyone because no one was listening. "I know we've had a long day, but we only have two weeks before the opening show!"

Kurt was tired. As much as he loved being the star of the show, hello it  _was_  called "The  _Phantom_  of the Opera", he was over this rehearsal. He was sick of seeing Blaine watching him from across the stage. He was tired of all the questioning looks and nosey questions from Alyssa. Why did Blaine have to come in and ruin his ability to focus on the show? Worse even, he could hardly sleep at night because Blaine's sudden appearance had made the dreams come even more often now.

"Ok Kurt, stand over here!" Andrea yelled, startling Kurt. She was pointing downstage near where Blaine stood. Kurt held his head up high and strode across the stage. "Ok, not let's start from the beginning! Blaine, can you be our Raoul for today? Damon is sick, plus you need some on stage practice!"

Blaine ran to the spot where Andrea was pointing. Kurt barely suppressed a groan that was lodged in his throat. He merely glanced at Kurt who began singing. " _Down once more to the dungeon of my black despair! Down we plunge to the prison of my mind! Down that path into darkness deep as hell! Why, you ask, was I bound and chained in this cold and dismal place?"_ Kurt lost himself in the song. He was at home when he was performing. He let his mind wander as he sang, somehow still knowing when to come in and when to fade out.

" _I'm-I'm sorry Kurt. I just can't up and move to New York! I've lived in Ohio all my life, I don't know anything else!" "But Blaine!" Kurt was crying now, he tried so hard to keep the tears from falling, but he just couldn't. "You said you loved me, that you always would! I thought you would be happy that I landed a role already. Albeit it's a small one, but at least it's something!" "Kurt, don't you see? It isn't about that. I can't do it. I'm not ready to leave Lima. If that means giving you up, then that's what it will be." "So you're just giving up on us? Just going to throw me out with the trash? Well fine then! I'll leave willingly!" Kurt slammed the door to Blaine's dorm room and slid down it. Inside he could still hear Blaine. "Kurt, I do love you. Oh why can't you see how hard this is? I love you more than anything, but I can't do this. I can't do US right now." Kurt had heard enough. He stormed off to his room. He knew he was acting childish, but Blaine had hurt him. Blaine was sending him away, leaving him, when he needed Blaine the most._

Kurt was lifted from the memory when he heard Blaine's voice cutting through the theater. " _Free her! Do what you like only free her! Do you have no pity?"_

Kurt sneered as he came in with his line. " _Your lover makes a passionate plea!"_

Alyssa delivered her line next, " _Please Raoul, it's useless!"_

Kurt held his breath knowing Blaine was next in line. " _I love her! Does that mean nothing? I love her! Show some compassion!_

Kurt sneered even bigger as he delivered what was now his favorite line, " _The world showed no compassion to me!"_ Kurt almost wanted to grab the stupid hobbit looking boy and shake him. YOU showed no compassion to me, Kurt thought. The one person who I trusted with everything and you left me out to dry. Then five years later you think you can just waltz in here, to the musical  _I'm in_  and everything will be ok? Ha we'll see about that.

Andrea stopped Kurt on the way to the dressing rooms. "Kurt, you were wonderful today! I've never seen that much emotion in you! Whatever you're doing to psyche yourself up, well keep doing it!"

Kurt flung the door to the dressing room he shared with Alyssa open, letting it bang against the wall. Alyssa jumped off the chair with a little shriek. "Kurt! What happened to knocking?"

"Sorry," he replied, sliding onto the chair opposite of her. "I'm just really tired lately."

"Hmmm" she said thinking. "This doesn't happen to have anything to do with that Blaine boy showing up does it?"

"NO!" Kurt replied quickly. Too quickly for Alyssa's taste.

"Are you sure?" she asked, her tone sickly sweet. "Because if not, then I may just ask him out for a drink."

Kurt groaned and slid down in his chair, thinking of the time Rachel though that Blaine was straight and the insanity that came after that drunken party. "Trust me 'Lyssa, he and I play for the same team."

"Ohhhh" she replied, slightly put out. "Well then, you should go for him! You'd make an awfully cute couple."

Kurt stared her down. "No. Blaine and I have enough history as it is. Please, though, no more questions. This isn't Jeopardy you know?" Unfortunately, Kurt could see the wheels turning in Alyssa's mind as she worked out what Kurt had just said.

"Wait…you weren't the 'drama queen' ex Blain was telling Andrea about the other day were you?" Kurt shot daggers with his eyes at her. "Ooooh you were! Kurt come on! Whatever happened can't be that bad! Tell me!"

Kurt sat up knowing he had been defeated. He knew sooner or later he'd have to tell her anyway, why not now? He leaned towards her and after she promised to keep it between them, started in on his tale of heartache, romance and more heartache.


	3. A Bud Starts to Form

The alarm went off at 7AM sharp. Kurt rolled out of bed while rubbing his puffy eyes. Time to take out the hardcore moisturizers today, he decided. He looked at his reflection in the mirror and almost gasped. He seemed to be turning into the phantom. There were dark bags under his eyes and his complexion had turned somewhat sallow. His face seemed smaller, as if that were even impossible. He looked rough; he feared that no amount of crème would do the trick today.

He trudged to the theater, hoping Damon was feeling better so he wouldn't have to run lines with Blaine again. After his talk with Alyssa yesterday, he wasn't even sure what to expect when he got to the theater. What he definitely did not expect though, was to arrive to see Blaine and Alyssa whispering to each other in the hallway as if they were sharing a secret. Kurt cleared his throat loudly as he walked towards the dressing room door. Alyssa jumped away from Blaine and quickly ran to Kurt. Kurt looked over his shoulder at Blaine, who was standing there as if he were a three year old that had just gotten caught stealing from the cookie jar. Kurt turned his attention back to Alyssa. "So what important discussion were you having with Blaine?"

"Oh Kurt, we were simply just sharing stage secrets!" She emphasized with a flourish of her hand.

"Stage secrets huh? Like what?"

"You know, uh, like always wearing eyeliner to make your eyes pop!"

"Uh-huh… ok then don't tell me what you two were talking about," Kurt pouted. "If I find out you were trying to help him get my part in the show then I will just cut you off from my weekly 5th Avenue shopping sprees!"

"Kurt Kurt Kurt. I promise it was nothing of the sort. Just trying to be friendly with the new guy!"

"Even if the new guy broke one of your closest friend's heart?"

"Kurt, Blaine seems different, more mature maybe, than the one you described. Maybe you should give it another try?"

"Fat chance" Kurt snorted. "Mercedes asked me to try and befriend him. I shall attempt that. I don't even know if I can do that, after what he did to me, I can't trust him."

Kurt was walking towards the stage to practice, but was pulled into a storeroom by a pair of strong hands. "Kurt, we need to talk."

"Oh no we don't. You did  _plenty_  of talking before we graduated from Dalton. I'm pretty sure I made my opinion of the whole thing quite clear."

"Yes, yes you did" Blaine laughed, remembering the day quite well.

" _No Blaine, I do NOT want to talk to you!" Kurt yelled, slamming the door in Blaine's face. "Just hear me out Kurt, I don't expect you to understand everything, but I do care about you." Kurt threw a book at the door. "Understand? UNDERSTAND? What's there to understand? You want to break up with me so that you can go screw every guy in Lima senseless while I work my ass off trying to make a living in New York!" Kurt knew he was wrong, but Blaine had really cut him. He felt that the world was falling in on him and he needed to leave Dalton. "Kurt," Blaine begged, "please don't do this. Please let me in so we can talk ok?" "No, Blaine, I'm done talking." Kurt opened the door slightly in order to throw Blaine's tee shirt at him. "Here, take this back, I don't need the scent of you on my pillow anymore." "Fine Kurt, you win, I'm leaving. If you ever want to talk, you have my number."_

"Blaine, what are you doing here?" Kurt asked pointedly.

"What do you mean? I'm here working on my acting career. Seeing you again is just an added bonus."

"An added bonus?" Kurt spit the words out venomously. "Blaine, I did not ask for you here, nor do I want you here. I am here to do my job and continue my rise to fame."

"Kurt, can we just stop all the fighting? It's been five years. Please stop hating me and maybe try to be my friend. I've done my fair share of growing up, have you?" Blaine extended his hand hoping Kurt would shake it. Kurt blew air out of his mouth, exasperated.

"Fine Blaine, have it your way. We can  _attempt_ to become friends, but don't expect me to trust you or anything ok? Because it will not happen."

"Trust me I get your point loud and clear."

Kurt whirled around and stormed out of the storeroom. He took quick strides trying to put distance between the two of them. Blaine followed him dejectedly. He had been hoping that Kurt had let go of everything. Blaine wondered whether this had been the right idea. Granted, he hadn't actually known that Kurt was in this show, but he wasn't going to complain either. He was hoping that maybe if they spent enough time together he could at least patch up their friendship. Kurt had hurt him when they broke up, granted; he hurt Kurt a lot too. He just wanted to prove that he was different know and he should have remembered that getting Kurt to do anything he didn't want to do was next to impossible.

When they reached the stage Andrea was waiting for them. "Blaine, Damon is still sick so you'll be reading his lines. Kurt, are you ready?"

"I am  _always_ ready to put on a show," Kurt grinned at his stage manager.

"Huh, there's the old Kurt I used to know," Blaine whispered, barely audible to Kurt.

Kurt turned to face the curly haired boy. "Yes Blaine, I am still as much of a diva as I was back at Dalton." Dalton. There he had said the dreaded word, gotten it out in the open, weirdly, he felt relieved.

"Ok boys! Um, let's get to practicing shall we?"

The two headed to opposite sides of the stage to practice entrances and exits by cue lines and music. By the end of rehearsal everyone was ready to leave, including Andrea. "Good night everyone! No rehearsal tomorrow ok? You're all doing wonderfully!"

On the way back to the dressing room Alyssa grabbed Kurt's arm. "Shopping tomorrow? 5th Avenue?"

"Yes, Alyssa dear we can go shopping!"

"What about if I invite the lovely Blaine to go with us? Maybe I can straighten him out, if you catch my drift." Alyssa winked at him, Kurt slightly cringed.

"Um, well I don't know if he'd want to."

"Oh please, I know you at least don't hate him anymore. You didn't snarl at him today. Though I must say you look awful cute when you're mad."

"I always told him he looked like a wood nymph." Blaine interjected while walking up behind the pair. "Of course I'd love to accompany you to 5th Avenue, seeing as I just got here a week ago, it seems my wardrobe could use an update."

"Well, ok then." Kurt tried to keep his eyes focused on Blain long enough to talk to him. "Meet at my apartment at 9AM?"

"Um, Kurt, I don't exactly know where you live."

"Oh. Uh it's 224 Park Avenue. In the big apartment complex."

"Isn't that expensive?" Blaine knew Kurt liked nice things, but apartments in New York City were ridiculous.

"Yes, but that's the price I pay for luxury. See you at 9 AM?"

"Yeah, see you then. Bye Kurt, Alyssa."

"Bye Blaine!" Alyssa waved to him then turned back to Kurt. "See? That wasn't so bad now was it?"

"Well…no, I guess not. Still, it might be awkward, so I apologize in advance."

"Oh Kurt," she said playfully smacking his arm. "I believe it will be absolutely enjoyable!"

It was 9AM when the doorbell rang. Kurt half wanted to hide under his covers instead of opening the door. He knew it had to be Blaine, Alyssa was never on time. He trudged to the door, his apartment feeling as if it went on forever. Finally his hand closed over the doorknob and he slowly turned it. "Hey Blaine, right on time, come in."

The dark-skinned boy slid through the opening and took a seat on Kurt's couch. "What a swell apartment, I see you're doing fine by yourself." Blaine was attempting conversation, hoping that Kurt wouldn't lose his temper.

"Yeah, showbiz pays well at least," Kurt said grinning, sliding into a chair. He had to remind himself not to get too comfortable around Blaine. That's what got him into the mess at Dalton in the first place. "So, uh, why did you decide to come to New York of all places?" Kurt was being genuine and hoped that Blaine would take it that way.

Blaine slightly raised an eyebrow. "Well you know I love singing, and I'm passionate about acting, so I decided to come out here and give it a shot. I didn't expect to land as an understudy of a lead part in such a big musical."

Kurt tapped the tips of his fingers together while trying to figure out what to say next. "Well, uh, I guess the producers really liked you then? You're lucky. Everyone else normally does off Broadway shows that have about five attendees."

"Yeah," Blaine said, relaxing onto the couch. "I guess I am lucky. Hey, nice furniture by the way." He smoothed the leather of the couch he was sitting on. "I never would be able to keep white clean." Blaine mentally slapped himself. He was talking about Kurt's furniture for god's sake.

"Um, yeah well you know I like things clean." Kurt replied, one eyebrow rising slightly. "Plus, white goes well with my complexion."

Blaine and Kurt were saved from even more awkward conversation when the doorbell rang. Kurt hopped up out of the chair to get it. "Well this saves us from having to talk about the weather now." A small grin passed over his lips. He threw open the door. "Alyssa darling! So glad you could make it before noon!"

Alyssa grinned, "Oh hush you! I simply could not figure out what to wear!"

"So you chose jeans and a tee with a vest? Comfortable, yet a little stylish. I just hope they don't kick us out of Saks for thinking you're a hobo."

"That's no way to talk to a lady Kurt," Blaine laughed. "Alyssa I think you look gorgeous!"

"Well at least someone knows what it means to be a gentleman." She grinned and pecked Kurt on the cheek.

"Him, a gentleman?" Kurt laughed, "That's the funniest thing I've heard all day!"

"Hey!" Blaine yelled, "I am very much a gentleman." He took a giggling Alyssa by the arm and swept her out the door. Kurt sighed at the sight of them. Blaine always knew how to make a girl, heck anyone, swoon, even if the feelings weren't returned. He pulled the door shut and locked it behind him. Today could go two ways, he thought. It could be a grand adventure or a drop into Hell.


	4. The Tempest

The trio walked into Armani, arms laden with shopping bags. "Kurt, this suit would look great on you!" Alyssa said walking towards a silver suit. "The color would make your eyes pop!"

"So would the price tag!" Blaine laughed.

Alyssa and Kurt stared at him in an odd way. "Price is simply something I look at and never consider when it comes to fashion."

"Oh." It was all Blaine could think to say. He looked at the bags on his arms. He had saved up enough money for a spree like this, but it seemed Kurt didn't even worry about how much something cost. True, Kurt never seemed to worry about it when they were in school together, but this was different somehow.

"Anyway Alyssa, I think it's time to get lunch, don't you?" Kurt was saying.

"Yes yes let's go to the  _Carnegie Deli_  you know I love their veggie platter!"

"Is that ok with you Blaine?" Kurt asked, turning to look at the other man.

"Um, yeah that's fine," Blaine answered. Alyssa took each of the boys by the arm, almost knocking them all into a mannequin.

* * *

The three entered the deli and began to order. John, the deli manager smiled as he recognized Alyssa and Kurt. "I see someone's been out shopping," he grinned at the amount of bags each person held.

"Yes and now we're staaaaaarrrrrrrving!" Kurt whined. "I want the usual please."

"So, a turkey burger with lettuce, tomato, and a little mayo."

Alyssa put her order in next, "could I please get a steamed veggie platter John?"

"Anything for the little lady," he smiled back. "And for you sir? Are you a friend of these two?"

Blaine smiled, "yeah, me and Kurt went to high school together and all three of us are in the same production. Oh, I'll take a hamburger, lettuce, tomato and mustard please."

"Coming right up." John walked over to the fryer. "So you're an actor like Kurt?"

"Um, yeah. Of course I'm not as good as him, but I'm pretty good at it."

"To hear him go on about it, you'd think he was the only actor in the world. I swear that boy is more of a drama queen than my teenage daughter."

"Yeah, that's Kurt for you. Apparently he hasn't changed since high school. He had to be the center of attention then too." Blaine paused, remembering their days at Dalton. He and Kurt were inseparable senior year. He often reminisced about the good days. That was why he was here right? To try and get back what he had lost?

"Blaine?" A soft hand rested on his shoulder. "Are you ok? Alyssa and I have been calling your name for a while now." Blaine realized that he was standing in front of the register with a bunch of angry New Yorkers trying to pay. He smiled apologetically at them and turned to the table Alyssa was seated at.

"Yeah," he answered Kurt. "I was just lost in my head for a second."

A sad smile played across Kurt's lips. "Yeah, I know how that is."

* * *

Blaine sank onto Kurt's white couch. "Who knew that shopping could be so exhausting?"

"Oh Blaine, this is nothing compared to what Kurt normally does. Of course he nearly has to drag me out of the Louis Vuitton store every time." Alyssa blushed and nodded towards the bedroom where Kurt was putting his things in the closet. "I think he uses it as therapy, he's too sad I always tell him."

"Therapy? I call that torture! I thought we were never going to leave Versace!" Blaine replied exasperatedly. "I couldn't imagine having to do this more than once a year!"

"Oh Blaine, this is at least a monthly thing!" She lowered her voice, "so how do you think it went?"

"Well he didn't spend all day yelling at me and he didn't slam the door in my face, so it went a lot better than what I expected."

"I told you it would work!"

"Told him what would work?" Kurt was leaning in the doorway, having just caught the end of their conversation.

"Oh, that taking you out shopping would wipe that sullen look off your face!" Alyssa smiled brightly at him.

Kurt grinned and sat on a chair. "You know me well Alyssa, retail therapy always helps!"

"Well boys," Alyssa said with a devilish grin, "it's getting awful close to dinner time so I better get going."

"You can stay here, we can order out." Kurt replied looking at her pointedly. "Chinese, pizza, Italian, you name it."

Alyssa faked a yawn, "I'm quite tired though. I'm sure we have a long day tomorrow and I need to be in top form."

"Well," Kurt said, biting his lip, "I guess I could understand that. Have a good night Alyssa!"

"Good night Kurt, Blaine."

"Night Alyssa." Blaine rose from the couch. "Well, uh, Kurt, I guess I should leave now too." He watched Kurt closely. Kurt stood there slightly fidgeting, unsure of what to do or say.

"Well, I mean, uh, if you'd like to stay for dinner that would be ok." Kurt wanted to slap himself. Why was he inviting Blaine of all people to eat dinner with him? He looked silently at Blaine, wondering whether he wanted Blaine to stay or leave. It worried him how much he wanted Blaine to stay.

"Well, I mean if you don't mind, uh sure I'll stay for dinner." Blaine was staring at the floor, a blush slowly creeping over his cheeks. He stood there rubbing a circle into the carpet hoping Kurt wouldn't kick him out.

Kurt softly sighed then asked, "is Chinese ok? I just had pizza the other day."

Blaine glanced up at Kurt, "yeah that's fine. Lo Mein and sweet and sour chicken please?"

Kurt walked into the kitchen to place the order and Blaine sank onto the couch. It had been five years since they had last seen each other. Somehow he had found Kurt again. This time he didn't plan on losing him. That is, if he could get him back in the first place. He knew it wouldn't be easy, but he had to try. He couldn't just let the best thing that ever happened to him walk away forever. He closed his eyes and thought about how well the day had gone. Kurt hadn't yelled at him once, but Blaine couldn't be sure whether that was because Alyssa had been there at not. Kurt had actually put his hand on him, made sure it was ok. Blaine willed the tears no to come, willed the memories and the emotions that came with it to just leave, but even he wasn't that strong.

_Blaine walked up to Kurt and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Kurt, hey, please can we talk?" "About what Blaine? Are you really going to do this tonight? At graduation?" "Kurt, please just hear me out. I'm-I'm sorry ok? I never meant to hurt you; I did what I did so I wouldn't hurt you." Kurt looked as if he were about to choke Blaine. "You didn't want to HURT ME? What do you think you did? You broke my heart ok? Is that what you want to hear?" "Kurt, shhh please, you're making a scene." "Oh I'm making a scene am I? Oh yes, I FORGOT, I'm a drama queen!" Kurt spat the words at Blaine and it was all he could do not to break down. "Kurt, I'm sorry ok? I really do love you; I wanted what was best for you." "No Blaine, you wanted what was best for you and you alone. It was never US it was always you." "Kurt that isn't true. I did everything for you." "Blaine please, just leave me alone. Just let me have tonight without having to deal with this." Kurt tilted his head up to show that he meant the words; before he could move Blaine kissed him a final time. He pulled away and softly said, "Just remember I love you, ok? I always will. There's a part of me that will never fully let you go."_

Kurt walked back in the living room but stopped at the door. He stood with his mouth slightly ajar at the scene before him. Blaine Anderson was sitting on his couch, in his apartment, in New York, with his eyes closed, head down, and oh, was that a tear sliding down his cheek? Kurt licked his lips, holding on to the door jamb for support. He was NOT going to go wrap Blaine in his arms and comfort him. This was the same Blaine that hurt him five years ago and it wasn't about to happen again. He straightened up and softly called out Blaine's name. Blaine quickly looked up, embarrassed. Clearing his throat he said, "um, hey, so when's dinner going to be here? Ugh, stupid allergies." He wiped his eyes on the sleeve of his cardigan.

"Oh, about five minutes." Kurt answered sitting on the opposite side of the couch from Blaine. "So, uh, I was wondering, uh, what exactly brought you to New York?" As soon as the question was out of his mouth, Kurt wished he had never asked it. He watched in shock as Blaine blanched.

"Uh, well, you see, um…" his face was turning crimson. How could he answer this question? He couldn't very well just say that the guy he loved lived here and he came to find him and set things straight. "Well, you know, I like, uh singing, and acting, and well I thought maybe I could come make a name for myself out here, you know?"

"Sure. I mean that's why I'm here." Kurt looked at Blaine suspiciously. "Though I thought you said you were too familiar with Lima to leave it?"

Blaine was saved by the doorbell. "Uh, where's the bathroom?"

"Down the hall first door to the left," Kurt answered while opening the door.

Blaine slipped into the bathroom and splashed cold water on his face. Were they really going to have this conversation now? He sighed and dried his hands off on the towel. It had been five years, he had hoped that Kurt had put at least some of what had happened behind him, apparently he was wrong. He inhaled deeply and let it back out. He slowly opened the door and walked back into the living room. Kurt was seated cross-legged on the floor with takeout boxes scattered on the glass coffee table. Blaine sat on the other side and grabbed a pair of chopsticks. They ate in silence for a while until Kurt paused and pointed a chopstick at Blaine. "You know," he said, "you never answered my question. The one about leaving Lima."

Blaine put his chopsticks to the side and slid the food away from him. "Well I finally got tired of being cooped up in a small town. I felt that I could make something out of myself if I tried. Plus, working at the Lima Bean does not do wonders for helping me sing." Blaine laughed before continuing. "I thought that maybe I should come out here and try out for a few things on Broadway, Hollywood just wasn't where I wanted to go. Plus, I knew you were out here. I thought maybe I'd get lucky and run into you at a show or something. I didn't think I'd be lucky enough to actually be in the same production as you." There he had said it, well most of it. Now he just had to wait for Kurt's response.

"So it took you five years to figure out what I already knew before I graduated? Priceless. You break my heart, disappear for five years, and then figure you can just waltz back to me as if nothing happened. You know Blaine, I never took you for being stupid, but now, I just don't know." Kurt's voice was a mixture between venomous and hurt; Blaine wasn't sure which was worse.

"Kurt, I told you I came here for not only myself, but to find you again. I know I screwed up but I just thought-"

"Thought that I'd have forgotten all about being the person who was screwed over by the one person they thought they could trust? Fat chance Blaine. That was the worst thing that ever happened to me, and if you think that being an understudy in the same musical as me is going to change my opinion of you, well that's never going to fucking happen ok? You had your chance and you left me heartbroken and alone. I left for New York the day after we graduated. I left Lima and never looked back. You know I can barely even call my parents because they have a Lima area code? That's what you did to me ok Blaine? Is that what you came here to hear?"

"Dammit Kurt are you listening to me at all?" Blaine's voice started rising and he gripped the edge of the table tightly. "I came here to try and make things right! Do I have to spell it out for you? I came to New York to find you ok? I wanted to fix things between us. I thought that  _maybe_  you would have grown up some by now!"

"Oh so I was too immature back then?" Kurt's volume matched Blaine's now and he was pretty sure the neighbors could hear but he could care less. He was finally getting the chance to tell Blaine exactly how he felt at the moment. "I'm sorry we all couldn't be Blaine fucking Anderson; head honcho of Dalton! I'm sorry that I couldn't be perfect like you. Dammit Blaine, just leave and stay out of my life for good!"

"I'm sorry Kurt, but I'm not going to do that. I'm not going to stand here and take this bullshit from you! I came here to apologize and you can't even accept that."

"Why can't you accept that I just want you to leave me alone?" Kurt suddenly stood up, knocking Chinese food to the floor. "Look, I'll even open the door for you!" He flung open the apartment door letting it bang loudly. "You know, Mercedes wanted me to try and be friends with you; that's why invited you shopping and asked you to stay for dinner. Apparently you can't accept my gesture. So please leave. Now."

Blaine stood up, slightly trembling. How had a day that started off so well ended so badly? He gathered his bags and stopped right in front of Kurt. "You know, I appreciate what you did for me today. I just wish you could see I really do still care. See you tomorrow." With that he left the apartment. Kurt closed the door silently and slowly slid down to the floor. He looked at the spilled food all over the floor. Red sauce was seeping into his grey carpet. At the moment he didn't care. Blaine was in New York City. Blaine had come to find him. Worse of all, Blaine still cared about him, came to make things right. Kurt just wasn't ready for this. He was confused and hurt. He lowered his head into his hands and let the tears flow freely. He didn't know what he felt for Blaine right now. Anger, resentment, hurt, yes all of those were there, but if he really felt he knew he missed Blaine. Deep down inside some part of Kurt still loved him. I may love him, Kurt thought to himself, but I can't, won't, trust him. He has to somehow prove that he's changed, that he's different from the eighteen year old boy I left back in Lima. He slowly gathered himself up and cleaned the mess he had made off the floor. He made a mental note to call a carpet cleaning company in the morning. He made his way to the bedroom and slowly changed into pajamas. He lied down on the bed slowly letting his eyes close, not caring that he hadn't moisturized, slowly falling into a deep, dreamless sleep.

* * *

While Kurt was dead asleep, Blaine lay tossing and turning in his bed. Try as he might he couldn't stop replaying the horrible evening in his mind. Where had he gone wrong? Where had the fighting begun? That was one of the things he hated about his and Kurt's relationship, they constantly fought. It was one of the reasons he had broken up with Kurt in the first place. Moving to New York with Kurt would just put even more of a strain on their relationship. Blaine sighed, rolling onto his side; he cringed at the thought of seeing Kurt tomorrow. He thought about quitting Phantom for a minute only to come to the conclusion that he'd probably lose any chance of being with Kurt if he did so. So leaving the production was a no, he was just going to have to suffer through it. Finally he felt his eyes closing, the sleep that washed over him was the most welcome thing he could remember in a long time, as was the memory that came back in his dream.

" _You know I hate Valentine's Day Blaine," Kurt whined, "it's so superficial." "Not when I'm around! Ok you can open your eyes now!" Blaine moved away from Kurt as he slowly lowered his hands from his eyes. "Is that a chocolate fountain? Strawberries? Blaine, I love it!" Kurt wrapped his arms around Blaine and kissed him hungrily on the mouth. "See," Blaine said, pulling away slightly. "I told you I could make you like this holiday." Blaine picked up one of the strawberries in the bowl that was perched on his nightstand and dipped it into the chocolate. "Here, open up," he placed the strawberry in Kurt's mouth. Kurt bit off the end of the strawberry and began chewing. He closed his eyes and let out a small moan. "So good…how did you know?" Blaine smiled at him, "darling, I just pay attention to you." Blaine kissed Kurt, sitting on the bed and pulling Kurt with him. He planted a kiss on Kurt's nose and sang softly. "You make me feel like a teenage dream…"_


	5. A Sunbeam

Kurt awoke to his alarm clock and quickly rolled out of bed. He brushed his teeth and went through his moisturizing routine. He ran a comb through his hair and added enough hairspray to kill the ozone completely. He walked into the living room and came to an abrupt stop. What the hell had happened in here? What was that awful orange stain in his carpet? All of a sudden the memories from the night before hit him. Kurt groaned. Today's practice was going to be utter hell. He placed a phone call to a reputable carpet cleaning service and walked out of the apartment.

Kurt arrived at the theater and briskly walked to the dressing room. He found it empty, which was no surprise to him because Alyssa seemed to like having ten minutes to get into full makeup and costume. He dropped his bag on the floor and picked up a rose off his chair. Intrigued, he opened the small card that was attached to the rose with black ribbon. The card simply states, "Kurt, please forgive me for yesterday. I acted irrationally. –Blaine." Kurt wasn't sure if he wanted to throw it away or not. He looked around the room and found himself placing it next to his mask on the table. He turned around as the door behind him opens. Alyssa popped her head in first and then proceeded into the room when she saw Kurt was fully clothed. "So," she began, "how were things after I left?"

"Well they started off fine, but as usual for us, ended in a fight."

"Kurt, you have to stop letting your temper take over."

"Alyssa he broke my heart. Then he just shows up here to let me know he wants to fix things?"

"Maybe you should give him another chance, maybe he's changed."

"Oh you're on his side now too?"

"No Kurt, I'm just saying that I think you too are good for each other. I see the way he looks at you when you're onstage. The man loves you; at least you can acknowledge that."

"So what if he loves me? I don't love him, at least, not anymore." With that he strode out of the room and headed for the stage.

"Gather round everyone, I have some good news and some bad news."

Kurt looked at Andrea worriedly. There were five days until the premiere of the show, three until his parents arrived. "Could you give us the bad news first?" He asked looking up at Andrea.

"Well, the bad news is Damon quit, he's quite ill and has decided to sit this one out. This means the good news is that I believe Blaine is fully ready to take on the part of Raoul, but since we have a mere five days until the premiere we will have a long rehearsal today!" The whole cast groaned at the idea of long rehearsal even though they knew it was needed. "Kurt, Alyssa, Blaine, places please, we're rehearsing the Phantom's lair scene where Raoul comes to save Christine from the Phantom, starting with the musical number.

Kurt wanted to strangle the stage manager. Why did she think it was necessary to make them rehearse this part first? Oh well he resigned, at least he got to fight with Blaine in this scene.

"Go now! Go now! Leave me!" Kurt's countertenor rang across the theater as he pointed a finger at Alyssa. "Masquerade . Paper faces on parade . . . Masquerade . Hide your face so the world will never find you . . . Christine, I love you..."

Alyssa, wrapped in Blaine's arms, staring at him as if he were the only person in the world, sang out, "Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime .Say the word and I will follow you."

Kurt hated the way Blaine was staring at Alyssa as he sang his line loud and clear. "Share each day with me."

"Each night, each morning" was Alyssa's next line.

Kurt was ready to get this scene over with; Alyssa was clinging onto Blaine a little too closely. Kurt sang his closing lines passionately. "You alone, can make my song take flight, it is over, the music of the night!"

Andrea walked onto the stage clapping. "Wonderful guys! I want to see it just like that on opening night. Kurt, that was great, your emotion was wonderful I hope to see it during the real show."

As long as he is here, Kurt thought to himself, that will be exactly how it goes. He glanced over at Alyssa and Blaine who were still holding onto each other, laughing now. He turned around disgusted and headed for the dressing room. "You know…" the sound of Alyssa's voice made Kurt jump. "Someone might get the impression that you were a little jealous of me out there."

Kurt gave a most undignified snort. "Me? Jealous because you were clinging to Blaine? Please."

"Kurt I saw your face. You were practically green with envy. I was worried you might forget we were in rehearsal and come try to snatch me away from him."

Kurt laughed. "You can have him Alyssa. I most definitely do not want him."

"You keep telling yourself that, it seems to be working wonders." Alyssa's voice was dripping with sarcasm now. "You hate him so much, that's why you kept the rose." She gestured towards the flower lying on the dressing room table.

"It-it was a nice gesture. Why throw away a rose?"

"Humph. Fine Kurt, have it your way as usual" she sighed, sliding into a chair. "I just don't see why you won't give him a chance."

"He-"

"Yes he broke your heart, I know. That still doesn't mean he hasn't changed. He came looking for you Kurt. He traveled over a thousand miles to find you. He obviously still loves you. Once you realize that and figure out what the rest of us already know, well let's just say it'd make it a lot easier on the rest of the cast."

"What do you mean what the rest of you know? Has Blaine said something?"

"Heavens no Kurt! It's something you have to figure out for yourself. If I tell you you're just going to tell me I'm wrong."

"Fine then, have it your way" Kurt pouted, reapplying a bit of eyeliner. He was trying to figure out what Alyssa meant. What did everyone else know that he didn't? A thought pushed its way into his mind but he quickly pushed it away, ignoring it. There was no way in hell that he was still in love with Blaine. He dismissed the absurd idea and turned to Alyssa. "If you all think that I am still in love with Blaine and that we're just going to kiss and make up then go on to live a happy life; well then, you're extremely mistaken." He swept out the door, his phantom cloak fluttering behind him.

"Oh Kurt" Alyssa sighed into the empty room. "You are in love with him, the only people who can't see it is the two involved. He loves you but thinks you hate him." She giggled to herself "and I thought women were supposed to be the confusing ones."

Kurt stepped into an empty wardrobe room. He covered his face with his hands and tried to keep himself together. He did not love Blaine. He repeated this mantra to himself until he had slid down the wall and was half sitting, half lying on the cold concrete floor. Well dammit he thought, I don't care if I love him or not. Last time I decided to love the idiot he left me. I can't trust him. So why is it that I want him back? No. He's going to have to prove himself, and I'm damn well not going to tell him I'm even thinking about considering trying to be with him. He's had five years to figure out what he wants. Maybe, maybe if he proves himself, maybe I'll think about letting him get close again. Kurt was tired, bone tired. He fell asleep propped up against the wall.

Suddenly Kurt felt himself being roughly shaken. "Kurt? Wake up!" A voice was yelling at him, but he just wanted to sleep. The voice was a bit quieter when it yelled "guys, he's in the wardrobe room, he must have fallen asleep!" Kurt felt himself being picked up by a strong pair of arms. He struggled to sit up but sleep still had a hold on him. The voice spoke again, quieter this time. "Alyssa let Andrea know I'm taking Kurt back to his dressing room, he seems to be sleeping and won't wake up. I think he needs a break." Kurt heard a swish of cloth and tried to let the arms around him relinquish their hold. "Stop squirming or I'm going to drop you. It doesn't help that you've added a few pounds since I last saw you." Kurt tried to say that he was all muscle than you very much but all he managed was an unintelligible grunt and instead nestled in the arms that were carrying him. Suddenly he was being lowered onto a soft couch. The whole experience reminded him of a time long ago at Dalton.

" _Kurt, wake up." Blaine spoke softly as he pressed a kiss to Kurt's forehead. "Unf" Kurt muttered. "Just five more minutes?" He asked, slowly opening one eye. "No. You are going to wake up now because I say so." Blaine pressed a kiss to Kurt's nose, and then captured his lips. Kurt sighed, kissing Blaine back. "You know Blaine; if you weren't so damn cute I'd kick you out right now." "Kick me out of my own bed? That's low even for you Kurt." Kurt's eyes widened slightly. How did he get into Blaine's bed? What exactly had happened? Blaine laughed at the look on Kurt's face. "Don't worry love; I didn't steal your manhood while you were asleep or anything of the sort. You fell asleep in the hallway last night and the door to your room was locked so I carried you in here." Kurt relaxed instantly. "Oh, why didn't you just knock? Jordan would have let you in." "Well I didn't want to disturb him at 3AM." "Oh well thanks for taking care of me." Blaine smiled and kissed Kurt again. "Anything for you baby."_

Kurt awoke with a start; he looked around and tried to place where he was. He finally realized that he was in the dressing room at the theater. He glanced to see someone else was in there with him. At first he thought it was Alyssa, but after rubbing his eyes he realized that his silent visitor was definitely male. "What are you doing here Blaine?" he groaned sitting up on the couch.

Blaine turned around in the chair, fiddling with the rose he had left for Kurt. "Well someone had to carry Sleeping Beauty to her throne" he grinned. "Did you know you talk in your sleep?"

Oh great, Kurt thought. "Um no, what did I say?"

"Oh you mainly mumbled, but I did catch you thanking me for taking care of you." Kurt stood up from the chair and walked towards Kurt. He stopped when he was about a foot away from the other man. "I'll always take care of you if you let me." Blaine placed a tanned hand on Kurt's shoulder and squeezed gently. "Just let me know when you're ready for me to do that." He turned and left the room. As he passed through the doorway he turned to Kurt and said, "Andrea's worried sick about you, go find her when you're ready, I think she wants to run more scenes with you in it."

Kurt groaned. Why did life have to be so hard? He sat on the couch wringing his hands; the shoulder Blaine touched was still slightly warm. Why was it that whenever Blaine was around he began to lose all common sense? He needed to clear his head. Somehow he had dozed off and ended up in Blaine's arms once again. He remembered one moment of lucidity he had where he had snuggled closer to Blaine as he carried him. God I'm pathetic, Kurt snorted. I go for five years without any type of sexual interaction and I'm already thinking about cuddling with Blaine again. Granted he and Blaine had never gone any further than some heavy petting, but five years without any interaction from a person close to him seemed a bit stupid in retrospect. Looking back Kurt couldn't help but to realize that he had pushed every guy that close to him away for fear of being hurt again. God Blaine had screwed him up.


	6. A Perfectly Performed Plan

Kurt finally left the dressing room to go in search of Andrea. He heard people on the stage so he headed in that direction. Alyssa's strong soprano voice was belting out the words to "Think of Me". Kurt softly touched Andrea's arm to let her know he was there. "Kurt" she said in a whisper, "are you feeling ok?"

"Yeah, sorry about that, getting to sleep has been awful rough lately."

"Hmm, the life of a Broadway star is often filled with sleepless nights. Try and get some good sleep in the next few days so you're ready for the show!"

Kurt laughed to himself, if only it were that easy he thought. He stood in the shadows of the backdrop watching Blaine rehearse his lines. Blaine was a natural actor; he remembered his lines easily and his emotions shone on his face.

* * *

Kurt crawled into bed late that night. He was exhausted and worn out, but he had asked for all of this. He was a star on Broadway now and therefore he better get used to late night rehearsals. Kurt turned on his side and felt the coolness of the pillow on his cheek. Blaine's words from earlier in the days drifted back into his mind. "I'll always take care of you if you let me." Kurt snorted in disgust. So letting someone go off to New York and then waiting five years to come and find them was taking care of them? Nice joke Blaine, real funny. Kurt turned on his back in an attempt to get more comfortable and slowly fell asleep.

_Blaine placed an arm around Kurt as they sat on the steps looking up at the stars. "I'll always be here for you," he whispered. Blaine's warm breath on his neck sent chills down Kurt's spine. "I know" he murmured, attempting to scoot closer to Blaine. Blaine took Kurt's hand in his. "I mean it. If you ever need anything, I'm right here." Kurt thought about telling him then about his plans to go to New York but the peaceful look on Blaine's face made him forget it. Kurt clasped Blaine's hand in his and kissed Blaine on the neck. He slowly made his way up until he kissed his lips. Blaine turned towards Kurt, pulling him into the embrace. Kurt slid his hand up Blaine's thigh trying to get even closer to him while teasing Blaine's lips with his tongue. Blaine moaned softly into Kurt's mouth and practically pulled Kurt into his lap. Suddenly there was a loud bang as the front door was pulled open. "Kurt? What's going on here?" Burt was standing at the door with a look Kurt had never seen before on his face. The two boys jumped apart and Kurt smoothed down his trousers. "Uh, nothing dad, Blaine and I were just looking at the stars." "Oh is that all you were doing then? Come on in boys, I think it's about time for the three of us to have a talk." Kurt swallowed and caught the look of sheer terror on Blaine's face. He reached out and lightly squeezed his hand._

Blaine sat straight up in bed. The memories of the dream he was having still lingered in his mind. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and thought about what he would give to be a teenager again; happy and in love. Now here he was, twenty-three, miserable, yet still in love. He shook his head. He knew he had to get Kurt to trust him again and he knew that was going to be extremely hard. He had made it this far though he told himself. It almost seemed as if fate was giving him an extra chance to be with Kurt and he was gladly going to take it. He thought back to that night underneath the stars and how awkward the conversation with Burt was. From what Blaine gathered Kurt and Burt had had a row and now Blaine was caught in the middle of a whole lot of awkward. Burt had sat them down on the couch and explained that he had in fact- researched what exactly went down in the tent and felt that he had schooled himself enough in the subject of gay sex. Blaine had sat there in undignified silence as Burt explained to him that if Blaine as much as hurt one hair on Kurt's head then there would be dire consequences to pay. Blaine laughed at this memory now. Burt had had nothing to fear. As much as Blaine wanted to show his love for Kurt, Kurt was too shy or reserved or  _something_  to ever let them go that far.

* * *

Kurt was awakened but the doorbell. He struggle to sit up, wondering who on earth was trying to come in at such a god forsaken time in the morning. It was then that he rolled over and looked at the clock which read 11:25AM. Kurt couldn't remember ever sleeping that late, but he knew he needed it. The doorbell rang again and he jumped out of bed and briskly walked into the living room. He looked through the peephole in the door and immediately gasped. How could he have forgotten that his parents were coming today? He quickly unlocked and opened the door to let Burt and Carole in. Carole took one look at Kurt's disheveled clothes and asked, "did we wake you honey?"

"Yeah, but that's ok because I slept a lot longer than I should have. Long rehearsals you know."

Carole looked at him intently taking in the dark circles under his eyes and faint lines around his mouth. "Is everything ok? You look worn out."

Kurt gave her a small smile. "I'm fine I promise, just ready to get this show over with. The….cast…is a bit to handle." Kurt glanced out the window hoping he hadn't revealed too much. He was unsure of why he didn't want to tell his parents that Blaine was here. In the end he decided to chalk it up to unnecessary drama. "I'm glad you're here though." He said while hugging both of them. "Let me go get ready and you two settle in, then maybe I could take you sightseeing!"

Burt looked at him excitedly. "Don't you have practice though?" he asked, his smile leaving his face.

"Oh that isn't until six! Now sit, make yourselves at home while I go make myself look somewhat decent!" He pointed them to the couch while he reentered his bedroom.

An hour later, which was fast by his standards, Kurt was bustling Carole and Burt out the apartment door. "Where shall we go?"

"How about the Empire State Building?" Burt interjected.

"I was hoping to take you there at night actually," Kurt answered, "the view from the eighty-ninth floor is so much lovelier at night." Carole then suggested they go to Fifth Avenue, but Burt groaned at that idea. Eventually they decided on visiting Times Square, Kurt insisted that it would be at least a little less crowded in the day time.

They walked around Times Square marveling at all the stores. From Hershey's to Virgin Records, there were so many things to take in. Carole and Kurt walked arm in arm chatting about all the different places and attempted to decide where to go first. It was nearly four by the time the trio was headed home. All three of them were laden with shopping bags, most items a courtesy of Kurt. They arrived back at Kurt's apartment around four thirty and he promptly began to make dinner. He cooked a stir fry with chicken and assorted vegetables. Kurt felt bad that he scarfed down his food, but he was almost late to practice and Kurt Hummel was  _never_  late to anything.

* * *

Kurt was flushed and out of breath by the time that he reached the dressing room of the theater. He burst in there but immediately stopped as he saw the scene in front of him. Alyssa was sitting at her dressing table applying makeup and laughing at the two people sitting on the couch. First there was Blaine sitting there with his arm draped around another form, a male form Kurt noticed, his temperature slowly rising. As Kurt stood in the doorway, his hand gripping the doorknob intensely, he took in the unknown boy. Straight brown hair, light complexion, blue eyes, Kurt was pretty sure his mouth had dropped open. Blaine was running a hand through the hair of a boy that reminded Kurt too much of himself to be comfortable. Blaine turned around after what seemed an eternity to Kurt. Blaine blushed, quickly removing his hand from the other boys head and scooting away a little. "Um hey Kurt," Blaine spoke softly, embarrassment ripe in his voice. "This is James, my…" he seemed to search for the words.

This James character stood up, holding his hand out to Kurt, answering for Blaine, "I'm his ex, but also his friend. It's very nice to meet you Kurt, I've heard all about you." Blaine blushed an even darker shade of scarlet as Kurt shook the other guy's hand. Kurt glanced over at Alyssa who was trying in vain to conceal the peals of laughter emitting from her. "Well, uh I better go get ready for rehearsal," Blaine stuttered while pushing the Kurt look alike out the door. "I'll see you onstage Kurt."

Kurt turned to Alyssa. "What the hell was that about?" Kurt was fuming and he wasn't exactly sure why. If he didn't have feelings for Blaine then why did seeing him with another guy, especially one that so closely resembled him, cause his blood to boil? Alyssa put her most sickly sweet smile on and turned to face her friend. "Whatever do you mean Kurt dear? Blaine wanted me to meet his friend James. You know Kurt, James certainly looks a lot like you; perhaps Blaine really couldn't get you out of his head no matter what."

"Idon'treallycare" Kurt murmured and sunk into his chair. "He's free to date whomever he chooses. Just because the guy had some of the same features as me doesn't mean it was because Blaine couldn't stop thinking about me or whatever."

"Kurt, are you really that dense? Do I need to spell this out to you? Blaine, you know, the tan, curly-haired boy that constantly stalks our dressing room? Yeah well news flash, he's in love with you!"

"Well isn't that grand? Too bad he left me with a broken heart and I don't care anymore because I don't love him? Why can't you two understand that?"

"Kurt. Shut up." Alyssa sighed, scooting her chair closer to Kurt's and resting a hand on his arm. "Kurt, darling, you did not see your face when you walked in that door, but I did. I thought you were going to rip that kid to shreds. You had the scariest look on your face, someone who didn't know you could have mistaken you for a serial killer by the look of hatred in your eyes."

"What do you want from me?" Kurt was holding back the tears, willing them not to fall. "I don't know how I'm supposed to feel ok? I loved him, loved him Alyssa and then that horrible breakup, and now he's back and I don't know how I'm supposed to react! Part of me wants to strangle him and the other part wants to hug him and make him promise that he'll never let me go!"

Alyssa hugged him. "Oh Kurt, you're making progress! At least you're admitting to having feelings for him still. I just want you to know that I think you two make the cutest couple ever!"

"Alyssa, nowhere in that statement did I say that me and Blaine are getting back together!" He sighed, waving his hands in an exasperated manner. "Why isn't enough for me to admit that I obviously have some type of feeling for the dumb hobbit?"

"Because I'm not going to rest until you two do something about this. Have you tried talking about it?"

"Yes and that ended with me having to get my carpet cleaned because I smashed carry out into my carpet."

"Have you tried not getting angry with him and letting him tell you his full side of the story? From what I hear you tended to cut him off every time he tried to explain."

Kurt felt a blush creeping onto his cheeks. "Well, uh maybe, but I was eighteen! How many teenage boys take something like that easily?"

"I know Kurt, I know he hurt you, but he really wants a second chance, just talk to him soon ok?" Alyssa pressed a friendly kiss to his cheek. "Now hurry and get ready before Andrea goes on the war path again."

"Yes ma'am" Kurt mock saluted her as she left the room. Kurt looked in the mirror and wondered how he had gotten here. Oh yes, he thought, Blaine came looking for me. Kurt began his makeup routine while trying to figure out how to start what was going to definitely be the most awkward situation of his life.

* * *

Alyssa closed the door to the dressing room and turned to the two boys standing there. "Well Mr. Anderson, our plan seems to have worked." She then turned to the slightly taller boy and addressed him. "James thanks for helping us, you're a great actor; you should try out for Broadway."

James simply laughed. "I think I'll stick with stocks and bonds. Well Alyssa, Blaine, I better get going, I have a date with my girlfriend and she'll kill me if I'm late again."

Blaine stuck his hand out to James. "Thank you so much for helping me. If he doesn't like me anymore I don't know what I'll do."

James laughed, "if the look on his face was any indication, once you two have that dreaded talk, you should be right where you want him to be. I seriously thought I might be murdered in that dressing room."

Alyssa just smiled and hugged Blaine as James left. "Well Blaine, it seems you're winning him over to your side little by little. Though I must say, you must love him a lot to put up with him and all his diva-ness."

Blaine just smiled, his eyes going a bit starry. "I love him more than anything else in the world."


	7. Courting

Practice ran smoothly that day and everyone was exhausted by the time they were done. "Dress rehearsal tomorrow at 11! I expect everyone to be on time!" Andrea reminded everyone as they left for the night. The cast groaned at her. They knew dress rehearsal was going to be the longest day of their acting careers; it was the one day actors dreaded.

As they were walking back to the dressing room Blaine grabbed Kurt by the arm and held him back. "Kurt, hey I hope I'm not stepping over any boundaries, but I was hoping that maybe we could get together tonight and talk."

"Blaine, as much as I'm dreading this talk, but seeing as you're hell-bent on having it, I would say yes." Kurt held up a hand to stop Blaine from talking. "But, Carole and Dad are staying with me for the next few days and I figure they probably would not want to sit through that."

"Yeah, I understand." Blaine looked at Kurt sadly. "Let them know I say hi and miss them ok?"

"Sure." Kurt smiled warmly at Blaine. "I'll tell them. I bet they'll be surprised to know you ended up here too."

Blaine blushed, figuring Burt and Carole probably hated him for what he did to Kurt. Hopefully they could forgive him. They were the parents he had never had. "Oh, uh, yeah, well see you tomorrow then, I gotta run."

"Bye Blaine, see you tomorrow." Kurt walked away from the other boy and almost ran headfirst into Alyssa. "What are you still doing out here?" he glared at her.

"Just waiting on you" she smiled "so you two are actually going to sit down and have the talk?"

"Yes" Kurt answered irritatedly. "So you were spying on what Blaine and I were doing?

"Just a little. I had to make sure you weren't going to try and kill him or something, but I can see that you two have learned to keep your tempers in check some."

Kurt sighed at his friend and opened the door to the dressing room. He scanned the room and stopped dead in his tracks. Alyssa tried to push him in but the boy was non responsive. "Kurt! What is going on?" Alyssa peered around his shoulder and broke into a fit of laughter. "Ohmygoodness that is the cutest thing ever!" Kurt strode into the room to inspect the object sitting in his dressing chair. He poked the white ball of fluffy  _something_ and jumped back when it mewled.

"Is that a kitten?" Kurt was staring at the cat with his eyes wide and mouth hanging open. The kitten was curled up, sleeping in a silver tiara. Kurt couldn't figure out what was going on. "Alyssa, why in god's name are you laughing?" He twirled around to look at her. Her face had turned completely red and she was clutching her stomach with her hands. She pointed at the chair and managed to speak between laughs. "There's a…hahahahaha…note…hahaha…next to the kitten!" She erupted back into large guffaws.

Kurt slid the piece of paper out from under the ball of fluff and opened it.

_Dear Kurt, I hope you like Snoball. I saw him at the shelter and he reminded me of you. I thought you might like the company of another living creature. He's white so if he sheds it won't be noticeable. If you don't like him I'll find him a new home. Your Friend, Blaine. P.S. The tiara is for you so you never forget to be a drama queen._

Kurt stared at the kitten, Snoball, and slowly started to smile. He picked the little creature up and stroked its head. "Why hello there Snoball. I'm Kurt, I hope you like New York apartments because that's where you're going to be living with me."

Alyssa stared silently from the doorway. Blaine Anderson, she thought, you are a genius. A kitten of all things! "So who's it from?" Alyssa asked Kurt, feigning innocence.

Kurt turned around with a smile on his face. "Alyssa, meet Snoball, he's a gift from Blaine."

"A gift from Blaine? That was nice of him. What about the tiara?"

"It's so I don't forget to be a drama queen." Kurt snorted, "like that would ever happen." Blaine looked at Alyssa thoughtfully. "Though I'm not quite sure how he knew about my tiara collection. I've only told two people, Mercedes and…you. You told him didn't you?" Kurt pointed an accusing finger at Alyssa.

"I did no such thing!" Alyssa replied. "You probably told him yourself and just forgot!"

"Trust me, my tiara collection is an off limit subject for anyone, especially my boyfriend. I can't believe you told him!" If Kurt hadn't been holding Snoball he would have lunged at Alyssa. Instead he sat on the couch petting the kitten and loving the purring sound it was making.

"Kurt, you like it, the cat and the tiara, just admit it. He would have found out if you two  _had_ moved up here together. It would have taken both of you plus some to get the collection out the door."

"Oh hush, I don't have  _that_ many!" Kurt placed the kitten on the couch where it stood and looked up at him. He reached over and picked up the tiara. "This one is so gorgeous. It's delicately designed and look, there are little rhinestones in the inlay!" Kurt held the tiara up for Alyssa to see.

Alyssa's eyes lit up and she swallowed before asking Kurt, "um, Kurt, isn't that the tiara Tatiana wore when she played the Swan Princess?" She thought Kurt's eyes were going to bulge out of his head when she said that.

Kurt looked at the tiara closely. "No, it can't be" he whispered, mainly to himself. "How,  _where_  could he have gotten this? It's a piece of Broadway history!" He looked up pleadingly at Alyssa. "Tell me, please tell me that you know this is just a rendition of it.  _Please._  Even if it is though, for someone to go through the trouble of doing this… no, I have to give it back."

"Kurt, wait. He wanted you to have it. It would hurt him if you gave it back." She watched as a flash of anger shot through Kurt's eyes but spoke before he had the chance. "Let me guess, that's what he deserves after what he put you through? Kurt your opinion is going to change when you hear his side of the story. How do I know? He told me. Trust me Kurt, that hurt him just as much as it hurt you."

"But Alyssa-"

"No buts Kurt. Accept the gift and for goodness sake stop pushing the boy away. If the way you are smothering that poor kitten is any indication, then you miss Blaine more than you're letting anyone else onto, including yourself."

Kurt looked down and realized he was petting the poor kitten to death. He sighed and looked up at Alyssa. "I guess you're right. Maybe I could take down a wall or two and try and see him in a new light. It's going to be hard, but after this, well he deserves it." Kurt gave a small smile. "Plus, if there's one thing I know about Blaine Anderson, it's that he doesn't give up easily, especially when he really wants something."

Alyssa smiled knowingly. "Sounds like someone else I know. Well Kurt darling, I better get going, I know you have to get back to your parents too."

"Yeah, see you for rehearsal tomorrow." Kurt tucked the note into his jacket pocket, put the tiara carefully in his bag and set the kitten on the counter while he changed and wiped the makeup off his face. He finished and slung his bag over his shoulder, ready to get home. He tucked the kitten carefully in his arm and started home. He softly hummed "Defying Gravity", reminiscing about New Directions while walking home. He was so wrapped up in the feelings and memories running through him that he didn't notice the person following him.

* * *

Kurt felt awkward knocking on his own door but he didn't want to disturb the slumbering kitten in his arms by trying to get his key out of his satchel. "Mom, Dad!" he yelled through the door while knocking on it with his free hand. "It's me! Kurt!" The door finally swung open and he saw Carole beaming up at him. "Kurt darling, did you walk all the way home? In the dark?"

"Yes mom. I do it all the time; it's only a few blocks from here to Broadway." He smiled while closing the door behind him. He placed the kitten down on the sofa and placed his bag on the floor. "Where's dad?" he asked while glancing around.

"In the shower. What's that?" Carole asked pointing at Kurt's newly acquired ball of fluff.

"Oh that's Snoball. He was a gift from someone else on the cast." Kurt wasn't sure why he wasn't telling his step-mother that it was Blaine. He was almost afraid of her reaction though if she found out through the playbill Wednesday night.

"Is it a boy?" Carole asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Yes."

"Is he a good looking boy?"

"Yes." Kurt smiled, thinking that it was an extremely handsome, tan, curly-haired, hobbit-height boy.

"Is he, well, you know?"

"Yes." Kurt had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing. Yes Blaine was gay, he knew that  _quite_ well.

" _Blaine we have got to stop this." "Stop what?" Blaine asked, pinning Kurt to his bed. Kurt ran his fingers through Blaine's curls, pulling Blaine to his mouth. "This" he mumbled, kissing Blaine deeply. Both boys had already shrugged out of their Dalton jackets that now lay on the floor in a heap. Blaine's tie was becoming looser by the minute. Kurt's shirt was untucked and Blaine's hot hands were touching warm, soft skin._   _Kurt let out a small moan and fumbled with the buttons on Blaine's shirt. "Want….touch….you….now." Kurt knew his words were barely coherent but he didn't care. All he knew is that Blaine was touching him and he wanted to touch Blaine back. Kurt gave up with the buttons and yanked Blaine's shirt from his trousers. Kurt slowly touched his fingertips to Blaine's exposed skin. Blaine was warm and inviting. Kurt pulled him closer, running his hands along Blaine's sides while nipping at his neck. Blaine pressed himself to Kurt, bucking up into him as Kurt nipped at that special spot on his neck. "Kurt…we should….stop" Blaine tried to pull away from Kurt but knew it was no use; he wanted it just as much as Kurt did. Blaine's fingers trailed from Kurt's back to his hips and down to his thighs. He was so close to touching Kurt that it almost hurt. Kurt barely noticed what Blaine was doing, instead focusing on the feel and taste of Blaine. His hands worked over Blaine's back , sides and abs, his hands wanting to cover as much skin as possible. Kurt kept kissing Blaine, pulling his tongue into his mouth and sucking on it. His hands wandered and he grabbed Blaine's ass in an attempt to pull Blaine closer to him. Blaine couldn't control himself after this and slid his hand over the bulge in Kurt's trousers. Kurt moaned and pushed himself up into Blaine's hand. Kurt thought he was going to die from the friction in his pants. Blaine was_ touching _him. All Kurt could think of was that he wanted more and he wanted more now. Kurt slid a hand between them in an attempt to remove the clothing barrier. Blaine pushed Kurt's hand away. "I….want…to" Blaine murmured into Kurt's mouth. Kurt slid his hand up Blaine's thigh, wondering if he could turn Blaine as incoherent as he was right now. Blaine was too busy undoing Kurt's trousers to realize that Kurt was doing the same, until Kurt was touching him, oh god, stroking him. Blaine captured Kurt into his hand and released a small groan. How could Kurt be so damn perfect? He slid his hand up and down, taking in the feeling of Kurt, noticing that the taller boy was shuddering under him. It took everything Blaine had to keep himself from tearing Kurt's clothes off and just taking him there on the bed. Somewhere in Blaine's sex-starved brain though he reasoned that this was_  not  _how Blaine wanted their first time to go. He wanted both of them to be ready and not just caught up in the heat of passion. Kurt thought he was going to die of pleasure. Blaine was touching him, stroking him, with just the right amount of tenderness and pressure. He knew he wasn't going to last long and hoped that Blaine was like that too. He mimicked Blaine's strokes, feeling Blaine tremble over top of him. He snuck a look at Blaine and was happy to see a look of complete ecstasy on his face. Kurt felt himself tighten and realized that he was about to release. "Blaine…I" before he could finish his sentence Blaine was shuddering in his hand releasing cum all over Kurt. Kurt could care less at the moment because he was doing the same, moaning Blaine's name as he fell back onto the pillow. Blaine collapsed onto Kurt and kissed the pale boy softly. "God Kurt, that was amazing." Kurt smiled and focused his bright blue eyes on Blaine's brown ones. "Yes, amazing is definitely the word."_

"Kurt honey, are you ok?" Carole's voice sounded worried and far away.

"Huh?" Kurt asked turning to look at her.

"I thought you were having a spell or something. You were standing there and you went away in your head. You turned red and your mouth was hanging open."

"Sorry mom. I just…I'm tired. Long day at practice, you know."

"Yeah, I understand. You still haven't answered my question."

Kurt searched his brain but had no idea what Carole had asked him. "Sorry, but what question?"

"I asked you who gave you the gift. I should know what man has eyes for my son." She smiled at him, glad to see that Kurt was looking happier than she had seen him in a while. What she didn't expect was the answer Kurt gave.

"Oh, it was Blaine, he gave it to me."

"Oh that's a nic- Blaine? As in Blaine Anderson? From Dalton? That Blaine?"

"Do I know any other Blaine?"

"Do I need to have a talk with someone?" Burt's voice sounded from down the hallway.

Kurt wished the floor would just open up and eat him. "No dad, its ok. Blaine's in  _Phantom_  with me. He's playing Raoul."

Carole wrapped her arms around Kurt. "Oh baby, I'm sorry, is he treating you ok?"

Kurt pulled away from her embrace and turned to face the two of them. "Yeah, he gave me a kitten. But also, he's…changed somehow. We're becoming…friends again." Kurt paused then continued in a slightly hushed voice. "He said he came to New York to find me. He said he wanted me to give him another chance."

"That boy tries to lay a hand on you and I'm going to get my shotgun."

"Dad no, it's ok, really. We've talked some. Apparently there's more to his side of the story than I, uh, allowed him to tell." Kurt was blushing by this point, embarrassed that he never tried to let Blaine explain.

"Well we don't want him to hurt you again." Carole said, placing an arm on Kurt's shoulder. "I couldn't stand to think about you going through all that hurt again."

"Don't worry about it. We have a long way to go before I would ever trust him enough to let him get that close again."

"You really are growing up Kurt, I'm really proud of you son." Burt clapped Kurt on the shoulder. "You're making a name for yourself Kurt Hummel, any father would be extremely proud."

"That's true Kurt honey. We love you very much and no matter where you go, you'll always be our son and that's what matters." Carole started tearing up and hugged Kurt closely. "We have a surprise for you" she sniffed.

"Ooooooh a surprise? For me? What is it?"

"You'll see Wednesday night!"

"Awwww no fair!" Kurt fake pouted and hugged both of his parents tightly. "Thanks for being here. I wouldn't be where I was if I didn't have great parents to support me!"

* * *

Kurt pulled himself out of a deep slumber at 9AM. There was a slight pressure on his chest and his back was in slight pain. He opened his eyes and realized that Snoball was curled on his chest and he had slept on the couch. He picked the fur ball up and placed him on the couch while he sat up and stretched. He quickly dressed and made breakfast. He chewed on a piece of toast while reading the New York Times that had been left at his door. A piece of paper fluttered out of it and lay on the table. Snoball poked his nose at it and meowed for Kurt's attention. "What do you have there Snoball?" Kurt picked up the piece of paper and read it, gasping at what he saw. All the blood drained out of his face and the paper fluttered to the floor as Carole walked in the door. She took one look at her step-son and almost rant to the table. She picked up the paper on the table and read it. In letters cut from a magazine, someone had written, "Kurt, if you think you can just take Blaine from me this easy you are sorely mistaken. Leave him alone or suffer the consequences."

Carole wrapped her arms and tried to calm Kurt. "It's probably just a cruel joke."

"If it was a joke," Kurt choked out, "they wouldn't have used Blaine's name. We're not even together! This is stupid!"

"Honey calm down. Do you think maybe it was one of the people in your production? Maybe someone who's homophobic?"

"If you are a homophobe, you should not work one Broadway" Kurt hissed. "This is stupid. I am not going to worry about this. The show is tomorrow! I am not letting a stupid letter that looks like someone has read too many Nancy Drew books stop me from performing with my  _friend_."

"Ok honey, but take a cab or something tonight please. I don't want you putting yourself in danger."

"Ok, but I still think it's stupid. I live in a highly populated area; no one could touch me without there being a witness."

* * *

Kurt finally calmed himself right before he entered the building. He could not let that note get to him. He walked into the dressing room and saw Alyssa sitting at her table. "Hey 'Lyssa, ready for today?"

She yawned and then answered, "no. I just want to go back to bed and wake up after this show is done."

Kurt laughed "that's what you get for being the Prima Donna of the show my dear!" He turned to his table and gasped. A vase of red roses sat there with a little card propped against the bottom of the vase.  _Dear Kurt, these reminded me of you because they're beautiful. Your Friend, Blaine A._

"He has got to stop doing this!" Kurt sighed.

"Oh please," Alyssa giggled, "you know you like it. Everyone likes romance!"

"That's not the point! I said we could be friends, not 'hey Blaine try courting me'!"

"Well good for him. He's showing you that he's willing to go the extra mile for you."

"That's Blaine for you. Even when you ask for nothing for your birthday you wake up to a room full of rose petals and a candlelit dinner for two in the dorm kitchen."

"And you two broke up because?" Alyssa wanted to smack herself as soon as the words left her mouth. "I'm sorry Kurt I didn't mean-"

Kurt cut her off "Alyssa, it's ok; I know you didn't mean to. Let it go, I'm not upset. How could I be when I have an awesome friend like you?" Kurt smile at her. "Plus," he added, "there's a dozen roses on my desk and like you said, who  _wouldn't_ like that?"

Alyssa giggled and grabbed Kurt by the arm. "Come on Kurt, let's go get this dreadful practice over with. Plus, you can stare at Blaine and think of all the dirty things you want to do with him." She flashed a wicked smile at her now blushing friend.

"Alyssa! Stop that!" Kurt grinned swatting his friend on the arm. "I do  _not_ think dirty things about Blaine!"

"You don't?" A voice behind the two caused the pair to turn around. Kurt blushed as he saw Blaine sauntering after them. Blaine grinned and sidled up and flung an arm around Kurt. He looked at the taller boy square in the face and told him "because I'm pretty sure I don't sleep at night because my dreams of you keep me awake." He winked at Alyssa as Kurt flushed an even darker shade of crimson. Kurt's mouth open and closed as if he were attempting to speak and Blaine laughed at him. "Oh come now Kurt, I was only joking."

"I know that." Kurt playfully pushed Blaine. Kurt realized what he was doing suddenly, but surprisingly realized he had missed it. The playful banter, the joking, everything Blaine had basically brought to his life since that first day that he met him on the stairs at Dalton. Kurt wanted to hit himself but yet wanted to hug Blaine at the same time.

"Hey now!" Blaine yelled while pushing Kurt back, "watch the costume! Don't I look so dashing?" Blaine tipped his hat towards Alyssa.

"Please Blaine, you look more like a hobbit in period clothing!" Kurt snorted.

"Hey that's mean! Well at least I don't look like the Hunchback of Notre Dame!"

Alyssa finally controlled her laughter enough to break into the conversation. "Should I leave you two here with each other while the rest of us practice so you can kiss and make up or?"

Both boys turned to look at her so fast that Alyssa was sure Kurt was going to fall over. "What? No we're coming." Kurt was blood red to the roots of his hair. Blaine thought he was adorable.

As the group continued towards the stage Blaine leaned over and whispered "so Kurt, how's Snoball?"

"He's fine, Carole and dad are taking care of him. Also, did you know you forgot the 'w'?"

"No I didn't, Snoball? Like the Hostess treat?"

Kurt sighed "only you would name an animal after the food."

"Now who's being mean?" Blaine made his 'look-at-me-I'm-pretending-to-be-hurt' face. Kurt just laughed at him

"Ok you two! Let's go try and rehearse before you two sneak off and forget all about us?" Alyssa smile sweetly as Kurt shot her one of his 'let-me-kill-you-now' looks.

"Oh don't worry about that Alyssa," Blaine laughed, "Kurt wouldn't let me near those perfect lips of his even if I begged him."

"Um hello? I'm right here you know?" Kurt glared at Alyssa wondering if he wanted to strangle her or just push her off the stage.

"Yes Kurt, we see you, you haven't turned invisible yet."

The trio headed towards the stage continuing to tease each other. No one saw the person standing at the end of the hallway; silently slipping into the dressing room.


	8. A Shadow of the Past

"Ok let's take a break! Rehearsal is going wonderful so far! I'm so proud of you guys!" Andrea stood in front of the stage looking at all of her actors. Everyone brought something mature and beautiful to the play, if this didn't turn out to be the number one play on Broadway then she was going to quit. She was so proud of how much these people had accomplished, she had handpicked every single person and they melded together to create one body. She watched quietly as Kurt walked offstage with Alyssa and Blaine. She was the most proud of Kurt. She had been unsure about the young boy who had shown up to audition for the Phantom but as soon as he opened his mouth she was enraptured.

" _Hello, my name is Kurt Hummel and I will be auditioning for the part of the Phantom." He looked confident enough, Andrea thought, but he's so young. "Well Mr. Hummel, what makes you think you should get the part?" Kurt cleared his throat and answered, "well the Phantom is always looked down upon as being the bad guy when in all reality the Phantom was just looking for love. His problem was only that he became obsessed and ended up driving the one person who cared away. I- I have a lot in common with the Phantom." Andrea felt bad for the boy. His eyes shone with emotion that boys his age should not have. Anger, resentment, regret. His eyes were far older than his looks; those eyes would haunt Andrea all day until she fell asleep. What was more haunting though was the voice that came from Kurt's mouth. He had chosen to sing "All I Ask of You" for the part and as soon as he finished Andrea knew she had her lead. "Thank you Mr. Hummel" was all she said though, "we'll let you know within the week whether we think you're a good fit or not."_

Andrea was pulled from her thoughts by an ear-splitting scream. She ran into the hallway hoping nothing had caught on fire. What she saw at the opposite end of the hallway was almost worse. Kurt was white as a sheet and was being held up by Alyssa and Blaine.

* * *

Kurt was laughing along with Blaine and Alyssa as he opened the door. He stopped dead in his tracks and let a blood-curling scream. He crumpled; luckily Blaine caught him before he hit the hard floor. Alyssa clutched Kurt as she scanned the scene in front of her. All of the roses Blaine had given him were thrown on the floor, the vase shattered on top of them. All of Kurt's makeup had been smashed and his clothing was strewn on the floor. Written on the mirror in scrawling, blood red letters were the words, 'Last Warning'. Kurt whimpered into Blaine's shoulder, just needing comfort from someone. "Kurt, I, I don't know what to say." Blaine just held the slender boy tighter to him, rubbing small circles onto his back.

"Why would someone do something like this?" Alyssa whispered, looking as if she were about to vomit. "Who in their right mind would tear up a dressing room in a Broadway theater?"

"Someone very angry." Alyssa and Blaine looked at Kurt who had spoken. "I-I received a letter today with my newspaper. I just thought it was a joke, I mean everyone has that crazy fan right?" He pulled himself up straighter but allowed Blaine to keep his arms on him. Kurt let out a hollow laugh. "The sender of that note would not be happy if they saw this scene right now."

Blaine looked up at Kurt. "What do you mean?" he asked in a hushed tone, his eyes conveying his worry.

Kurt pulled away from Blaine and sighed. "The letter told me I needed to stay away from you." He looked at Blaine warily. "Know anyone who would hate the idea of me and you being friends."

Blaine blanched. "No, it-it can't be."

"Blaine, you  _do_ know someone? Who?"

"Ian. He and I dated a few years ago but when I broke it off with him, well he kind of went nuts."

Kurt wanted to ask how Blaine had managed to be with another guy when Kurt had shut himself off from every guy that walked his way. Instead, he swallowed and asked. "How nuts exactly?"

Blaine pulled them towards his dressing room. "I'd rather not talk about this in the hallway." He turned to Michael, one of the stage hands. "Michael, can you please clean up the mess in Kurt's dressing room. Oh, make sure all of his makeup gets replaced. If you have to, put it on my credit card." He pulled the two into the darkened room and sunk onto the couch. Kurt took a seat next to Blaine, automatically assuming his position as comforter. Alyssa looked at the scene in front of her. If it had been under different circumstances she would have found the whole thing endearing. She suddenly felt uncomfortable, not knowing whether she should be taking part in this or not. "Um, do you want me to leave or?" she asked, looking at Blaine.

"No stay, you are a part of this too, plus, you're my friend."

Alyssa took the chair in front of Blaine's dressing table. She glanced over the contents of the table and smiled as her eyes saw a handwritten list. She turned back to the two men on the couch. "So Blaine, who exactly is Ian?"

"Well we met when I was working at the Lima Bean. His family had just moved there and he was looking for a friend. He came in often, one time while I was taking my break. He came over to the table I was sitting at and we talked for a while. He and I had a lot of the same issues. His family had moved here from some small town I had never heard of because of the bullying Ian had faced. He was full of anger and resentment and I felt bad for the kid. We kept talking and dated for a while but ended it beca- well that doesn't matter but yeah we ended it. He started stalking me. He would come into the Lima Bean and beg me to take him back. It was so bad that Carl ended up firing me because people were leaving when he was around. One day though, he must have just snapped. I woke up to a tapping on my window; it was him, trying to get into my room. I told him that that was the last straw. I went to the police and put a restraining order against him." Blaine paused, leaning back on the couch. Kurt placed his hand on Blaine's. He knew this was hard and he couldn't help but to feel bad for him. Blaine continued, "the next day I received a letter on my doorstep. It was one of those where the person had cut the letters out of a magazine." Blaine felt Kurt stiffen next to him. "Was that what you got Kurt?" The other boy nodded his head. Blaine sighed and went on with his story. "The note was a warning to me. Basically he told me that if I ever dated anyone else then he would go crazy." A tear ran down his face. "I came out here to start over again, to find you and to try to get my old life back. All I've done is put the one person I care about in danger. I'm so sorry Kurt. If you hate me, I completely understand."

Kurt had never seen this side of Blaine before. He was open and emotional, but at a different depth than he had ever seen before. Kurt grabbed Blaine's hands and looked him square in the eye. "I do not hate you Blaine. I thought I did. I had a good reason to hate you too I'm pretty sure, but that was the eighteen year old Blaine I knew. I may not like you that much sometimes but you are my friend. No amount of crazy people is going to stop me from being that."

Blaine gave a small smile. 'Well at least this is better then you throwing Chinese food at me and forcing me out of your apartment. Did you ever get the stain out of your carpet?"

Kurt blushed slightly "yes, I called someone to clean it for me. Sorry about that by the way."

"Don't mention it. I deserved it for thinking that you would just forgive me like that after what I put you through."

"Hey, I have an idea. Come to my apartment for dinner tonight with me and the parents."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"I think they deserve to know everything that's going on and I think you should explain what happened five years ago."

"Oh great, dinner and a shotgun shell." Blaine laughed before he turned serious again. "But Kurt, what are we going to do about Ian?"

"There's not much we can do. We don't have enough evidence of it being him really to go to the police. We should just alert the cast and crew and I'll lock the dressing room door from now on."

"Come on guys, "Kurt said standing up. "Let's go finish this rehearsal. Let's give it everything we've got!"

The three laughed, and left the dressing room together. Andrea watched them as they walked past. Her three stars had come so far since she first met all three of them. She remembered when Blaine had walked into the audition room. He was the last one for the day, and the only one who she had talked to that did not have a portfolio. She watched his tryout, mesmerized by the emotions the boy could portray. She had only met one other actor in her life that lit a room like Blaine did, both of them were leads in her play. She hadn't known about the history between them, but she was glad to see that they had worked it out. At first she thought that she had made a mistake in hiring Blaine, his emotions seemed guarded on the stage at first but once he and Kurt had stopped having their daily fights the boy that she had seen audition shone through once again.

* * *

Rehearsal ran smoothly that night. Everyone had heard about what had happened in Kurt's dressing room, nothing was a secret in a Broadway cast. For once though, the gossip was helpful. Everyone now knew who Ian was, well the short condensed version of who he was and they all had his description. Andrea clapped as the curtains fell for the final time. The cast walked out and took their bows and then sat on the edge of the stage. "That was wonderful everyone! I am very excited for tomorrow! You all are stars, it doesn't matter who is in the spotlight the longest, even if our dear Kurt begs to differ on that point." Everyone laughed and Alyssa hugged her best friend. "Now as long as we perform just as well as we did tonight, or better we will be the number one selling show on Broadway again, I'm sure of it!"

Everyone excitedly began chattering about who would be at the premiere, what celebrities they might meet, what producers might see them perform. Kurt, Alyssa and Blaine were sitting in their own corner chatting amongst themselves about a much more somber subject. "You two be careful tonight please? If you get a bad feeling then stay at Kurt's ok Blaine? I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"He might not mind but I'd be afraid of Burt giving me a nice talking to all night and then I'd fall asleep on stage!"

"Hey! Dad isn't that protective! He would just make sure you knew he had a shotgun under his pillow."

"He might have to use it on Ian. Could you imagine if he knew I was going home with you?"

Kurt shuddered. "Yes. Let's not discuss that please. He won't know because we are walking out that door, getting a cab, and walking into my locked apartment complex."

"Be safe you two, just keep an eye out wherever you go." Alyssa hugged the both of them as they all headed towards the exit.

Blaine hailed a taxi and held the door open for Kurt. "Pray for me" he told Alyssa while Kurt was sliding in. "I hope to make it through this alive."

"You'll be fine Blaine. Once the Hummel's see Kurt trusts you, they'll loosen up some."

"If Kurt trusts me. He still gives me these looks sometimes that hurt. It's like he's just waiting for me to leave him again."

"Show him that you aren't planning on doing that again. Be safe Blaine. I won't rest until I see you two safe and sound tomorrow at four," she gave Blaine a quick peck on the cheek before he climbed into the car. "Take care of my porcelain doll for me!"

Blaine laughed and waved to his friend as the cab pulled away from the curb. He looked over at Kurt. The pale boy was staring out the window, the lights of the city reflecting in his eyes. Kurt hadn't changed much in the past five years. He had grown a little taller and gained some muscle but other than that he was the spitting image of the boy he had known so well at Dalton. Blaine smiled as an old Train song came on the radio. He remembered when they had performed the same song at Sectionals one year. That had been a crazy year; they had tied at Sectionals with Kurt's old Glee club, New Directions. Blaine jumped slightly when a soft hand was placed over his. He turned to see Kurt staring at him. "Remember when we sang this at Sectionals?"

"I was just thinking about that actually" Blaine laughed, taking Kurt's hand in his own. "That was so long ago, you were just a little newborn Warbler."

Kurt laughed. "How naïve I was back then! I was so out of place when I first go there. Being in the Warblers was a lot different than being in New Directions."

Blaine laughed, "Yeah you could say that." He let go of Kurt's hand as the cab slowed to a stop outside Kurt's apartment building. He passed some money up to the driver. "Keep the change."

"Blaine I can pay for a cab!"

"So? I'm the reason you're in the cab in the first place!"

The boys hurried to the door and Kurt swiped his key card in the front door. They took the elevator to the second floor. Kurt opened the door to his apartment while Blaine kept an eye out. He opened the door and was greeted by a wonderful smell wafting in from the kitchen. "Mom! Dad! I'm home! I brought a guest!" Kurt threw his bag next to the couch and picked up the kitten that was intertwining itself between Kurt's legs. "Well hello there" he purred. "Did you miss me while I was gone all day?"

"I take it you like him?" Blaine laughed watching Kurt love on the white ball of fluff. "He looked so sad when I was at the shelter, I just had to save him but my apartment building doesn't allow pets."

"Well he's certainly in good hands" Kurt laughed placing Snoball back on the floor.

"Kurt honey is that you? Did you say you brought a guest?" Carole walked in from the kitchen area. "Oh Blaine…how wonderful it is to see you!" She smiled brightly but it didn't quite make it to her eyes. She hugged him and then looked at him. He had let his hair grow out and wasn't attempting to tame his curls anymore. He was slightly taller and his eyes had a sad look to them.

Burt walked into the room and stared fixedly at Blaine. Here we go, Blaine thought. I'm about to be shot. "Blaine. How are you young man?" Burt held his hand out and Blaine shook it, feeling quite awkward.

"Hello Mr. Hummel, I'm doing well. How's the tire and lube business going?"

"As well as can be expected, cars always need fixing."

The four of them sat around the dinner table, the tension was thick enough Kurt figured you could cut it with a knife. Blaine put his silverware down and cleared his throat. "Mr. and Mrs. Hummel thank you for the wonderful dinner, but I believe it's time I explain myself." Blaine took a large breath and started in on his story. "We all remember what happened five years ago between me and Kurt. He has invited me here in order for me to tell you my side of the story." He glanced over at Kurt who smiled reassuringly. He took another breath and continued. "What I never told Kurt or anyone for that matter was that during the last few months of school my father was diagnosed with cancer."

Kurt felt his heart drop. Blaine's father had cancer and he was too busy arguing with Blaine to be there to support him. "I'm so sorry Blaine" he whispered.

"It's ok, you didn't know." Blaine continued on. "I pushed everyone away because he didn't know what else to do. My father and I were never close; he actually disowned me when I came out to my family. I thought that maybe, just maybe he would see that I was still his son and it didn't matter that I was gay or straight. On his death bed though he asked me if I still thought I liked boys. I told him that I was in love with the boy I was dating." He heard a sharp intake of breath and glanced over at Kurt who was gripping the table with white knuckles. "He spat in my face and told me that he wasn't going to have a fag for a son so I might as well forget about living in his house anymore. I was so broken that I didn't know what to do. I pushed you away Kurt." Blaine paused and looked up at him, Kurt's blue eyes connecting with Blaine's brown ones. "I'm so sorry Kurt; I didn't mean to hurt you. I was so ashamed of myself; I wasn't even sure who I was anymore. I couldn't move here with you if I didn't know who I was. That wouldn't have been fair to you." Blaine stopped, breathing hard and took a swallow of tea. The room was silent for a few minutes and the air was heavy.

"Well then." Burt was the first to speak. "I guess we all judged you a little too quickly."

"Blaine, I-I'm so sorry, if I had just listened. If I had stopped thinking about myself for once. If I had looked at you I would have seen how hurt you were."

"Kurt, shhh. Don't blame yourself. That was my fault, I just yelled right on back at you. I pushed you away because I wanted to protect you but all I did was hurt you in the end."

Carole placed a hand on Blaine's shoulder. "I forgive you Blaine, do you forgive me?"

"The same goes for me Blaine, I always thought of you as another son."

Blaine smiled at all of them. "Of course I forgive you! I'm just so sorry that this happened at all."

The four of them caught up with each other for a little bit.

"So how was rehearsal tonight boys?"

Kurt and Blaine looked at each other and launched into the story about what happened with Ian.

"That boy comes anywhere near you two tomorrow and I will personally put a hole in him with my shotgun." Burt looked cross. "He tries anything funny and he will wish he was never born."

Kurt laughed. "Well at least we know we'll have protection."

"Blaine honey, are you planning on going home tonight? If this Ian boy is around I don't want you to worry about him."

"Yes ma'am. I probably should be going soon" he answered, pushing his chair back from the table.

"You could stay here tonight if you want to" Kurt said quietly. He looked at his parents, "if that's ok with you of course."

Burt looked at him questioningly. "The two of you alone in here?"

"I'll sleep on the floor sir. You can put your complete faith in me."

"That sounds familiar" Burt laughed. "You both are grown men now though, it's fine with me."

"Me too" Carole said. "Just promise not to kill each other in your sleep."

Kurt laughed, "I'll try not to, blood it too messy to clean up from grey carpet."

* * *

Kurt lay on the couch, petting Snoball. The kitten stood up and stretched then jumped from the couch and landed on the boy lying on the floor. "Umf, Snoball that's my face!" Kurt laughed, looking over at Blaine.

"He likes you, take that as a compliment."

"Well I did save him from the shelter you know."

"Yeah yeah, I know." Kurt yawned and rolled over onto his side. "Well goodnight Blaine, get some rest, we'll need it for tomorrow."

"Night Kurt, sweet dreams." Blaine smiled up at the form lying on the couch. He knew his dreams would be sweet. Kurt didn't hate him, he may even like him and that thought made Blaine happier than he had been in a long time.


	9. Pinnacle

Kurt sat up on the couch and rubbed his eyes. The smell of bacon hung in the air and Kurt's mouth began watering. "Good morning Sleeping Beauty," a voice spoke from the kitchen. Kurt turned around and saw Blaine standing in the kitchen wearing his pink apron. Kurt barely suppressed a giggle at the shorter boy.

"Wow Blaine, aren't you just the picture of the modern housewife?" Kurt laughed. He stood up and stretched, his shirt slightly riding up. He blushed slightly as he felt Blaine's eyes glance over the exposed pale skin. Kurt cleared his throat and picked up the purring kitten off the floor.

"Geeze Kurt, you sure do know how to make a man feel good about himself!" Blaine laughed and turned back to the stove. Bacon was popping in the pan and he was mixing eggs in a bowl. "I wanted to save your mom the trouble of cooking since you all were so kind to let me stay the night."

"It's really not a problem Blaine." Kurt said, looking at the other boy with a strange look on his face. "I mean, I would feel horrible if you left and Ian was out there somewhere."

"I can handle him. I've done it before." Blaine had a sad look in his eyes and Kurt wanted to hug him but stopped himself. He still wasn't sure what he felt for the shorter boy. He had tossed and turned on the couch almost all night because he couldn't stop thinking about what Blaine could be thinking of while sleeping. The dark haired boy had had a grin on his face every time Kurt had looked over at him. Kurt knew he still had feelings for Blaine but he was scared to admit it. He didn't want to get hurt again, even though Blaine had explained what had happened Kurt knew he was still scared of getting his heart broken again.

"Yeah, but you shouldn't have to. Look, I'll understand completely if you want to part ways now, I don't want him coming after you." Kurt braced himself for the goodbye, but hoped that Blaine would say he didn't care about Ian. Kurt was so confused. Half the time he wanted to accept Blaine and start over on a new foot. The other half of the time he wanted to push Blaine out the door and never let him in again.

Blaine grasped Kurt's hands and looked the taller boy squarely in the eye. "Kurt," he started, "I do NOT care about Ian being here. I want to be-be you're friend first and foremost. If you allow me to be more than that then I will gladly take it." He held up a hand to shush Kurt. "I know I know, I can't just waltz back in here and expect to be forgiven. I know that much, but I really do hope that you'll see I truly am sorry. I didn't come here and sit down with your parents to explain myself and just up and leave. If I had my way then I'd be with you forever." Blaine blushed; he had not meant to reveal all of that and now he was terrified. Kurt was looking at him with eyes wide and mouth slightly hanging open. "Oh god, I'm sorry Kurt. I over stepped didn't I? I open my mouth and stupidity spills out."

"Blaine. BLAINE!" Kurt has to yell to keep Blaine from rambling on. Blaine looked up at him and Kurt could see the fear in his eyes. "Blaine, I don't know what I want right now. I know that I really like having our friendship back but I don't know if I'm ready to try a relationship with you again. I'm sorry Blaine, but can you just give me time to figure out me?" Kurt released Blaine's hands and stepped back. He was terrified. There were so many emotions and unspoken words in the air at the moment. He didn't realize he was holding his breath until Blaine spoke.

"That's ok with me. I'll give you all the time you need. I can leave or stay away from you if you want me to."

"Then how will I decide if I want you back or not?" Kurt playfully retorted a small smile on his face. "I said we were friends Blaine; that means I want to spend time with you."

Blaine smiled back, happier than he had been in a long time. "Well, ok then! I hate to be a downer but what are we going to do about Ian?" Blaine turned back to the stove and started sliding food onto plates.

"I guess all we can do is just hope he lease us alone, or that the police will be around the next time he decides to try and mess with me."

"I'll pull a shotgun on him before he lays a hand on you Kurt." Burt spoke, startling both Blaine and Kurt. He walked into the kitchen followed by Carole.

"That smells good Blaine" Carole smiled at him, sitting at the table. "You didn't have to do this."

"I figured I could at least do something to give back to you guys for your hospitality." Blaine dished out the plates while Kurt grabbed orange juice and milk from the refrigerator.

Kurt sat down between Burt and Blaine and bit into a piece of bacon. "Mmmm, this is really good Blaine." He quickly started shoveling food into his mouth. "Here Snoball, try a piece of Blaine's bacon." He leaned down and placed a small piece of bacon on the floor in front of the kitten at his feet. He laughed as the kitten started chewing on it. "Blaine, Snoball appreciates your cooking too!"

"Kurt is it good for him to eat bacon?" Blaine asked laughing at how much Kurt loved the cat.

"Yes! He is a carnivore Blaine."

"So boys," Carole cut in, "are you excited about tonight?"

Kurt laughed, "of course mom, I was born for this!"

"Well you may be ready but I'm terrified." Blaine looked nervous.

"Don't worry about it Blaine, you'll do wonderful! You know all your lines and hit every note."

"Well coming from you Kurt Hummel, that is a major compliment."

They were interrupted by a knock at the door. Kurt and Blaine froze, both of them thinking it was Ian. Carole and Burt exchanged looks and small smiles. "Kurt honey," Carole said, "why don't you go open the door?"

Kurt pushed his chair away from the table and slowly walked to the door. He glanced out the peephole and was surprised to see flowers outside the door. He slowly opened it and smiled when he saw the person on the other side. "Finn! What are you doing here? You're supposed to be on the other side of the United States!"

"Well hello to you too." Finn laughed and handed the bouquet of chrysanthemums to Kurt. He hugged his step-brother and walked in the door. "I took a few days off to come out here and see you. I can't miss my little bro in his big debut!" Finn stopped abruptly when he saw Blaine laughing at the table with Carole and Burt. "Kurt" he hissed, "what is  _he_ doing here?"

"Finn, be nice. We kind of sorted things out. We've done a lot of talking since he got here. He's in the show with me. He-he came here to find me."

"What? And you thought it would be a good idea to let him hang out?"

"Finn! Come sit with us! Blaine fixed breakfast." Carole was smiling hoping Finn wouldn't start anything with Blaine, especially now that they had fixed things with him and Kurt.

"Finn" Blaine stood up holding out his hand. "How have you been? It's been a long time."

Fin fixed Blaine with a steely look. "Yes, five years I believe."

"Finn." Burt warned and looked at his stepson squarely. "Before you say anything, Blaine has come and explained a few things to us that change the story a bit. We have squared away some things that don't need to be brought up again."

"He broke Kurt's heart and I'm supposed to just sit here and believe he changed? Do you not remember over the summer when we had to listen to 'Candles' and 'Misery' on repeat?" Finn was angry. How could Blaine just show up after five years and expect Kurt to forgive him?

"Finn, I can understand where you're coming from. I left for five years and then I showed back up here. Well I explained to Kurt, Carole, and Burt that I pushed Kurt away back then because my father was dying of cancer. I don't expect sympathy; I just came here to try and get Kurt to forgive me and hopefully give me another chance."

"Another chance?" Finn was shouting, how dare Blaine do this? "Kurt is a star now and you just happen to show up here to win over his affections?"

"Finn, please stop" Kurt asked quietly. "I don't expect you to understand, but Blaine and I have put aside what happened, we were both in the wrong. We're friends again. Please don't do this, not today."

Finn quieted down and sat at the table between his parents. He didn't trust Blaine, but apparently Kurt did so he would just have to deal with it. He was planning on getting Blaine alone at some point in time this weekend and asking about his intentions with Kurt.

* * *

 

Kurt and Blaine arrived at the theater without any incident. They walked in the door and were greeted by Alyssa and Alex. "Hey Kurt, Blaine!"

"Hey Alex" Blaine greeted his understudy. "Sorry for you, but I'm here and ready to go on!"

"Oh that's ok! Kurt are you excited?"

"Yeah, thanks for asking." Kurt turned to the dressing room door and noticed something different. "Alex, Alyssa? Why is Alex's name on my door and where's my name?"

"Oh we moved you in with Blaine. I didn't think you would mind." Alyssa grinned at her friend. "You know, since everything had to be replaced we figured we might as well room you two together."

Kurt sighed "well since we can be trusted not to kill each other, I guess its ok." He walked down the hall and opened the door to the dressing room.

"SURPRISE!" Kurt almost fell backwards as a group of people yelled at him. Kurt almost began crying. Everyone from New Directions was there. Rachel, Sam, Quinn, Puck, Mercedes, Mike, Artie, Santana, Brittany, Ashley and Mr. Schue were all piled into the small room. "You guys…how did you get here?"

"Well," Rachel began, "it all started when Blaine called-"

"Me." Mercedes finished. "He asked me to round up everyone; he wanted us to be here for you. So as soon as I got off the phone with him I called Rachel and the phone chain went from there."

"Wait, so you knew Blaine was coming here?" Kurt was trying to figure out what was going on.

"Actually, we didn't know until a few days ago. Mercedes flew us all out here in her private jet." Puck was staring at Mercedes who was acting like this was nothing.

"We just wanted to cheer you on; this is a big moment for you!" Mr. Schuester hugged Kurt tightly. "All of us are extremely proud of you!"

Kurt had tears in his eyes. He couldn't believe that Blaine had done something like this for him. Maybe Blaine really did still love him. He had done this and Kurt would be extremely grateful forever. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned around. "How do you like your new dressing room?"

"Blaine, I can't believe that you did this for me, I can't even-"

"Shh don't say anything. Just catch up with everyone, I'll go get dressed in Alex's room."

"No no" interrupted Santana. "We have to go get to our seats; we don't want someone trying to take them." Everyone stared at her but she just looked at them pointedly and began to drag Brittany out of the room. The rest of them got the hint finally and left the two boys alone.

"Kurt, seriously not another word about it." Blaine had seen Kurt open his mouth to say something so he quickly talked before Kurt got the chance. "I wanted to do it so I did, now hush." Kurt abruptly shut his mouth and went to get dressed. He pulled his shirt over his head and felt a slight tingle of discomfort. He knew Blaine was looking; he was looking at Blaine too. As Blaine stripped off his sweater Kurt took in the tanned skin that was stretched taut over Blaine's ab muscles. Kurt noticed that Blaine had put on a little more muscle since he last saw him.

Blaine tried to keep calm as he pulled off his shirt. There was Kurt, shirtless, in the same room as him. He took an appreciative glance at the porcelain skinned boy. He noticed that Kurt had gained some muscle in his arms and, oh, was that a six pack he saw? He tried to peel his eyes away but he just watched entranced as Kurt began to button his white shirt. Blaine finally tore his eyes away and continued to dress. After ten uncomfortable minutes the two boys were in costume and sitting at their dressing tables. "Are you nervous at all Kurt?"

"To be honest, I am, but just a little though."

"Well that makes me feel a little better, I'm quite terrified."

"Really Blaine, you shouldn't be, you are a good actor and a great singer. The crowd will love you."

"Thanks Kurt. You really are a good friend."

"You're one to talk, you got all of New Directions to fly out here and see me!"

"It was all Mercedes. Of course I was chewed up and spat out before hand, but she finally agreed to help me."

Kurt laughed, "You're lucky that's all she did. But really, thanks, it was really nice of you."

* * *

 

Blaine and Kurt were standing behind the curtain, waiting for the play to begin. "You know," Kurt began, "this reminds me a lot of my first Regionals at Dalton. I thought I was going to die of fright."

"Yeah, I remember that. All of us Warblers were standing there watching New Directions and I thought you were going to pass out."

"But I didn't, and I think 'Candles' was one of the best performances the Warblers ever did."

"You're just saying that because it was when they all realized that you were an amazing singer and finally gave you the coveted solo you wanted so badly."

"Well, the reign of Blaine Anderson had to come to an end sometime" Kurt joked, fake punching his friend on the arm. "Plus, I'm not  _that_  scared now. We aren't competing for anything tonight, we're just going to go out there and have fun."

"I know, and I think we'll both do great, and Alyssa, she's the star of the show" Blaine said grinning.

"Oh whatever, it's called the  _Phantom_ of the Opera, not Christine of the opera!"

"Kurt, I was joking. But you have to give credit where it's due; Christine is a great actress."

"She is, and she's a good friend. Everyone on this cast is amazing, we all work well together."

The two boys quieted as the stage lights went dark and the overture began playing. Blaine gave Kurt's hand a quick squeeze and walked to the other side of the stage where he would be entering. In the dark light he wasn't sure, but he believed there was a smile on Kurt's face. Progress, he thought to himself. I believe I am finally making progress.

* * *

 

The crowd loved the show. Kurt, Blaine and Alyssa were flawless in both their lines and songs. Kurt was in his zone, the Broadway stage was right where he belonged. Alyssa's soprano countered with Blaine's tenor voice made sure there were almost no dry eyes in the theater. Kurt's passionate portrayal of the Phantom was wonderful, you wanted to feel bad for him all while wanting to grab your pitchfork and track him down with the rest of the cast. The curtains fell for the last time and the crowd began cheering. The cast hugged each other and made quick congratulations before it was time to take their bows. Kurt was the last to come out and stood there with wide eyes at the fact that they had garnered a standing ovation from a crowd that included some of Hollywood's finest stars. He joined hands with Blaine and Alyssa as the cast took a final bow and the curtain dropped for the final time that night. Alyssa turned and hugged her two friends. "Can you believe it? We did it!"

Kurt hugged her back laughing, "I told you we would be awesome! You were spectacular Alyssa."

"Hey what about me?" Blaine joked.

"You too Blaine, you make a great Raoul."

They walked backstage laughing amongst themselves until Blaine came to an abrupt stop. "Ian" he hissed steeling himself towards the boy.

Kurt's eyes flashed with anger as he sized up the boy in front of him. Ian was about the same height at him, black hair and had a sallow pallor to his skin. Green eyes looked back at Kurt from behind black framed glasses. The boy was slender and graceful, but the expression on his face was one close to murder.

"Well hello there Blaine. I've been expecting you."

"I would imagine so" Blaine retorted anger hanging onto every word. "You've been stalking me and now apparently you've been stalking my friend Kurt."

"Oh come off it Blaine, we all know that you and Kurt have history and we all know you want him back. That's why I'm here; to make sure you don't make that mistake."

"Mistake?" Blaine's voice was rising now. "You think that dating Kurt was…is, whatever a mistake? The only mistake I made is letting him go and deciding to date you! Why can't you just see that I don't want you Ian? I never really did."

Ian's eyes shone with absolute hatred for Kurt. "Kurt, don't listen to him. He wanted me, oh how he wanted me. Trust me, he told me almost every night." Ian's lips curled into a grin that looked more like a snarl. "He told me exactly how much he wanted me without ever having to speak a word."

"Ian. That. Is. Enough." Blaine was red and looked as if her were about to choke the black haired boy. "That was a  _stupid_  moment in my life that I have moved past, but apparently you cannot move on."

"Oh I see how it is. You get hurt by the little lady then date a real man and somehow still think that Kurt is the one you're in love with?" Ian snarled, taking a step towards Blaine. "Well isn't this priceless? Looks like you've found him again, but I don't think he wants you anymore, what a pity. You always were a little bitch that no one cared about Blaine. Even your father couldn't stand you."

Blaine stared at Ian, his eyes full of raw hurt. Kurt lunged for the green eyed boy. There was no way he was going to stand there and let this guy talk to Blaine like that. He grabbed Ian by the hair and kicked him in the shin, taking the boy down and landing on top of him. Ian swung and smashed Kurt in the nose, making him see stars. Kurt's nose was throbbing and bleeding but he didn't care; he was mad as hell and was going to make Ian pay for what he had just done.

"Kurt, no he isn't worth it!" Blaine was attempting to pull Kurt off Ian but Kurt was latched on too tight.

"Blaine" Kurt growled, "he just stepped over the line and I am not letting him get away with it." Kurt took another swing at the boy squirming beneath him and grinned when his fist connected with the side of Ian's face.

Blaine was about to try and get in the middle of the two boys again when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Don't try and get in the middle of this, you'll make Kurt think you think he's weak and you will never hear the end of that." Blaine turned to see Finn standing there.

"Finn what are you talking about?"

"I tried to help him move furniture in his room once and since then he regularly asks me why I think he's not strong enough to take care of his own problems. Let him do this, but if that boy gets the upper hand, well throw a kick or two to his ribs."

At that moment, the two boys heard a sharp intake of breath. Alyssa had turned deathly white and started shaking. They turned back to the fight to see that Ian was on top of Kurt, holing a pocket knife to Kurt's throat. Blaine stood paralyzed with fear; he couldn't lose Kurt, not now, and sure as hell not like this. The moment was broken when a yell sounded and a hollow thunk was heard. Alex had swung and hit Ian in the head with an aluminum baseball bat. Alex was now helping a shaking Kurt up, while Ian was sprawled unconscious on the floor. "My god what just happened?" Kurt was in shock and was white and trembling. Blaine stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Kurt.

"Hey, it's ok now. You're safe. Alex, go call the police."

Finn had gotten Carole and Burt who were now taking Kurt from Blaine. "Kurt baby are you ok?" Carole was holding onto Kurt and rubbing his hair. Kurt was sobbing into her shoulder and clinging to her arm.

Burt turned to Blaine. "Could you please explain what the hell just happened here?"

Blaine blushed. "Well sir, the short story is this is Ian, my crazy ex-boyfriend who apparently has come to New York to make sure Kurt doesn't lay a hand on me. We got into a heated argument and Ian insulted me which is when Kurt decided to fight him."

"Blaine, must you always make trouble for my son?"

Blaine's eyes began tearing up. "I'm really sorry Mr. Hummel. I came here to try and fix things between me and Kurt, but as usual I just made things worse."

"You didn't do this Blaine" Kurt spoke surprising them all. "I chose to attack him, I wasn't thinking." Kurt wiped his eyes and touched his sore nose tenderly. "The good news is that I don't think my nose is broken." He gave a slight smile and walked back over to Blaine. "Good thing Alex had that baseball bat handy. Where did he get that thing anyway?"

Blaine laughed. "Apparently it was a gift from his brother before he left Virginia to come up here. He keeps it in his dressing room for good luck.

"Well it was good luck that he had it or else..." Kurt shuddered and Blaine grabbed his hand.

"Don't worry the police are on their way." Alex said walking back down the hallway.

"Alex thanks for that. I well; I just might not be in this good a shape if you hadn't hit him."

"Oh it was no problem," Alex said smiling. "Anything to keep you safe Kurt.

Blaine raised a triangular eyebrow at Alex who blushed deeply. "Yes, Alex, thank you for saving Kurt."

Alyssa smiled at the display in front of her. Poor Kurt was oblivious to the fact that Blaine was, in his own way, marking Kurt as his territory and making sure that Alex knew that Kurt was off the market as far as he was concerned. Boys, Alyssa thought, they can't ever just speak how they feel, they skirt around it with sidelong glances and hidden looks.

* * *

 

"So you lunged at him and kicked him in the shin?" Officer Maxwell was asking Kurt.

"Yes sir, but he provoked me."

"How so?"

"He called Blaine a bitch and made a rude remark about his home life."

"So you grabbed him and wrestled him to the floor?"

"Yes sir." Kurt was blushing and couldn't look the officer in the eye.

On the other side of the room Blaine and Finn were being grilled by Officer White. "Why didn't you boys try and stop the tussle?"

"Well sir," Finn began, "Kurt gets angry when you try and stop him from doing just about anything."

"We didn't know he had a knife, sir." Blaine added sheepishly.

"You let Kurt get in a fight with your mentally unstable ex thinking he wasn't armed?"

"Yes sir. I-I wasn't thinking straight."

"So who is the Alex kid who hit Ian in the head with a bat?" Officer White asked, reading through the preliminary notes.

"He's one of the cast, he's Kurt's understudy." Blaine answered. "I think he should get a medal for saving Kurt."

"Well I'm sure Mr. Browning's lawyer will see things differently. I'm sure that he will argue that Mr. James was wrong in his attack of Mr. Browning."

"He deserved being hit with a bat for pulling a knife on my brother!" Finn was getting tired of everyone acting like Kurt was the bad guy here.

"Well boys, that's all of the questions I have, we'll let you know if any charges will be brought against anyone."

"That's it?" Kurt asked. "Ian just gets to go free?"

"As of now Mr. Hummel, yes. We cannot prove that Mr. Browning came here with the express purpose to harm anyone."

Kurt was angry. He was clenching hard to Blaine's hand and was slightly seeing red. How could they just let Ian go? He had almost been killed by the maniac.

"All we can tell you is that it would be a good idea if both you and Mr. Anderson get restraining orders against Mr. Browning."

"Come on Kurt, let's go get you cleaned up, then we can go to the Empire State Building like we planned today at breakfast." Blaine tugged on Kurt's had trying to get him to follow him. Kurt was still dumbstruck by the turn of events of tonight but he slowly made his way to the dressing room with Blaine.

"I can't believe I missed seeing everyone because the stupid police took forever" Kurt sighed.

"When the show is over why don't you take a break? Visit everyone who's still stuck in Lima. Go to Vegas and see Mercedes. Check out UCLA with Finn."

"What are you going to do when the show is over?"

"I don't know yet. I'll probably try out for more shows, I really like acting." What Blaine didn't say though is that if Kurt asked him, he would drop everything and go with Kurt to China if it meant being able to spend time with him.

"Oh. Vegas does sound nice though." He wanted to ask Blaine to join him, but he didn't want to be rejected again. Blaine seemed to really like New York; he didn't want to uproot him now that he was just getting settled.

"Yeah, definitely, I'm sure you'd have a lot of fun out there."

"Yeah, well are you ready? I've lived here five years and I've still never been to the top of the Empire State Building!"

"Me either, but I've been here a lot shorter amount of time than you have. How did you get them to let us go up there so late?"

"Let's just say that having a friend who is a Vegas show star has its perks." Kurt smiled and grabbed Blaine's hand. Come on; let's go round up everyone else."

* * *

 

The group stepped off the elevator and walked out onto the observation deck. "It's so beautiful up here at night." Alyssa's eyes were wide, taking in the city at night.

"That it is" Kurt smiled. "I don't know why I never come up here at night."

"Too many tourists." Burt joked. "Although I guess I am a tourist myself."

"I don't know, but I really like it up here." Finn was the last to get off the elevator and was now standing by the edge, peering through the chain link that kept people from falling off.

Carole and Burt were standing off by themselves, Burt had his arm around Carole as they stood looking at the cars driving by on the street far below. "They've come a long way." Carole said, leaning into her husband's embrace. "I think Kurt has almost mended. Blaine cut him open, but he's also healing him. I really do hope they both realize they're madly in love with each other before the show is done. I don't want to see Kurt get hurt again."

Over on the other side of the building Alyssa was dragging Kurt away from Blaine. "Kurrrrrt I need to talk to you about fashion advice." Kurt rolled his eyes at Blaine who just laughed and waved to Kurt.

When Alyssa had gotten Kurt far away enough from anyone listening she began talking. "I swear to god Kurt that if you stand here and continue to try and tell me that you still don't know how you feel about Blaine I am going to slap you."

"Hey now, physical violence is not needed. I know I love him, that's clear enough to me, but I don't really know how he feels. He says he loves me, but I've heard that before too. I know that last time there was a lot of stuff going on, but I just don't know. We were talking today and he told me that since I missed everyone so much I should take a short break to visit with everyone from Lima. Like go see Mercedes in Vegas try and see Rachel in Hollywood, that kind of thing."

"And the problem is?"  
"When I asked him what his plans were for after the show he said he figured he would stay on Broadway. I don't want to uproot him, last time, well you know what happened."

"Honestly Kurt, I think you should just talk to him. Ask him how he feels. That was the problem last time, you two didn't talk about it, you just assumed he'd be up for it and he just acted like an idiot."

"I know I know, but I'm terrified Alyssa. I 'm so scared he's going to reject me again and I don't know if I can handle that."

"I have a feeling he'll be up to it. He came out here to find you; I don't think he's ready to give up on you."

* * *

 

While Alyssa and Kurt were having their heart to heart, Blaine was getting the shakedown from Finn. "Look Blaine," he said walking up to the much shorter boy. "I don't know what your intentions are with my brother, but if you hurt him again, well I'm going to break your nose…or worse."

Blaine took a step back; Finn could be scary when he tried. "Finn, I honestly came out here to fix things with Kurt. I didn't expect him to forgive me or anything; I just wanted to set things straight, I didn't expect him to forgive me like he did."

"Well if there's one thing I know, it's that Kurt forgives easily, too easily sometimes I think. I also see how you treat him, and I know you care about him. He cares about you, loves you even I think, but I swear Blaine if you even think about doing what you did to him five years ago, I'm borrowing Burt's shotgun and using you for practice myself. Are we clear?"

"Yes Finn, we're clear. But listen, I'm not entirely sure what's going to happen. I put the idea in his head of him traveling to spend time with his friends after the show is over and he didn't invite me. I'm scared, I don't know if he trusts me enough to let me in again."

"No offense Blaine, but you kind of did that to yourself. Let me ask you this, what are you true intentions with Kurt? If he asked you to be part of his life again, what does that entail?"

Blaine looked up at Finn and answered "if he let me back, I would graciously accept the chance and never let him go again. I would marry that man if he would let me."

Finn was taken aback. Blaine had just said Kurt and marry in the same sentence. He looked at Blaine in awe, remembering the young boy that Kurt had become enraptured with those many years ago. The Blaine he knew then was scared and hid the fact that he was gay from a lot of people. From what Kurt had told him though, a lot of that had to do with the way Blaine's father treated him. Finn now had a little more respect for Blaine. He knew if Kurt wanted Blaine back, Blaine would take care of Kurt. "Well Blaine, then I guess who have my…blessing…of sorts." Finn laughed at what he was saying. "You two need to talk it out when mom, Burt and I leave. Oh, and tell Kurt to call me more often, you two, let me know how everything goes."

Finn smiled and walked away from Blaine. Blaine knew what he had to do. It was going to be the scariest thing he had done since up and moving to New York, but he was going to do it, because he was that close to winning Kurt back. The only thing that stood between them now, Blaine realized with a chill was Ian. Until he was behind bars they were going to have to be very careful.


	10. Safe and Sound

"Ok everyone," Andrea was saying to the group of people crowded around her, "tight security this time please! I don't care if you pee on yourself do not leave your post. Kurt was almost killed last night! Thankfully Alex was there to hit Ian with a bat, but we don't need any more encounters. And yes, Steven, we know you are sorry for abandoning your post because you had to pee, that's why we have walkie talkies tonight, but they are for bathroom emergencies only!" The blonde boy shrugged, embarrassed that he had been the reason Kurt had gotten hurt. "Seriously though guys, if he shows up within fifteen feet of this place, he can be arrested so detain him and call the police immediately."

Once the meeting was over, everyone meandered to their dressing rooms. Blaine and Kurt were in route to theirs when Alyssa and Alex stopped them. "Hey guys!" Alex smiled brightly, "Are you excited?"

Kurt smiled back "of course, we've done it once now, it'll be a walk in the park from here on out!"

"Easy for you to say," Blaine laughed. "Some of us still have a bit of stage fright!"

"Well you shouldn't, you were perfect last night."

"Please Kurt, spare me the lies. I was horribly flat in the middle of 'Think of Me'."

"You were a little off, but only a trained ear such as mine would have picked up on it."

Alyssa laughed at the two. "Would you two stop bickering like an old married couple and go get in costume?"

"Fine then miss priss," Blaine laughed and grabbed Kurt by the arm. "We wouldn't want to bother the star on her second night." Blaine and Kurt had disappeared, laughing, into their dressing room before Alyssa could come up with a retort.

Blaine let go of Kurt and walked over to the dressing table and sunk into the chair. Kurt looked over and saw that Blaine was shaking. "Blaine?" he asked softly, "are you ok?"

"Yeah why?" Blaine looked up at Kurt, uncertainty and worry clear on his face.

"Because you're shaking." Kurt placed his hand over Blaine's hoping to help calm him a little.

"I'm terrified. I feel like when I go out there with people like you and Alyssa, I look like I'm a loser. I haven't been out here, exposed to this, doing what you guys do for long, and yet I've got this huge role in a Broadway musical. I just feel like I'm letting everyone down." Blaine's eyes shone with unshed tears and Kurt just wanted to wrap his arms around Blaine. Instead he knelt down in front of the other boy, grabbed his hands and began softly singing, "you're so mean, when you talk, about yourself, you are wrong. Change those voices, in your head, make them like you instead. Pretty pretty, please, don't you ever, ever feel like you're less than, less than perfect. Pretty, pretty please if you ever, ever feel like you're nothing, you are perfect to me." As Kurt's voice faded, he could feel, almost hear in fact, his heart beating against his ribcage. He had just sung to Blaine, and while doing so, had pretty much told him exactly how he felt about him. Blaine just sat there, as Kurt stood up and sunk onto the couch. This was what he was terrified of, he had let Blaine know how he felt and he was met in silence from the man sitting in the chair across from him, staring almost through him.

"Do you remember the first time we kissed?" Blaine asked Kurt, leaning back in the chair.

Kurt turned to look at him, not sure if he had heard Blaine correctly. "What?"

"I asked, do you remember the first time we kissed? You were in the Dalton common room making that casket for Pavarotti, and I kind of spilled out my feelings for you and then kissed you."

"Trust me Blaine, I remember. You caught me so off guard I couldn't remember to breathe."

Blaine stood and slowly walked towards Kurt. "It was kind of like this" he said motioning around the dressing room. "We were all alone, just the two of us, but at the time we were mourning the loss of someone dear."

Kurt's heart felt like it was being squeezed. "Please don't Blaine" he whispered, not sure why he was stopping the boy from what he was set on doing.

"I walked right up to you and sat down, so terrified that I would break my resolve and run away." He moved closer to Kurt and placed his warm hand over the more slender one that was lying on the couch. Blaine leaned in close and softly kissed Kurt, cupping the soft porcelain face with his hand. Kurt stiffened for a moment and then relaxed into the kiss, his hand clenching and unclenching until he reached up to touch Blaine's face. If you swapped their outrageous costumes for Dalton uniforms it would have been the picture of the first kiss these two people ever shared. This was no mere kiss, but a kiss of passion and romance long forgotten. Blaine pulled away flushed and turned his face away, smiling, "we-we should practice now."

Kurt grinned, remembering the first kiss they had shared, one of the happiest things he could remember. "But Blaine, I thought we already were."

Blaine smiled and pulled Kurt back to him, kissing him more hungrily this time. Kurt held on, clinging to Blaine, knowing he never wanted to let go. He may have been confused about how he felt for Blaine a few hours ago, but now he knew, just like how Blaine knew he loved Kurt the day Kurt sang 'Blackbird', Blaine was all he wanted and needed in life and nothing else could come between them. Their relationship had stood the test of time and they were back, stronger than ever. Blaine was happy, no, ecstatic. Kurt liked him, wanted him, maybe even loved him and that's all that mattered to him right now.

Kurt couldn't control his thoughts at the moment. Blaine was kissing him and it felt every kind of wonderful and right that he had ever known. He had forgotten how much he enjoyed being with Blaine, knowing Blaine wanted to be with him just as much. He also knew that Blaine had answered his unanswered question. Both of them felt the same way about each other and neither one wanted to let the other go. He melted into Blaine, deepening the kiss, opening his mouth slightly and relishing the feel of Blaine's tongue brushing against his own. He had missed the taste of Blaine, missed the way their mouths fit together perfectly.

Blaine sank onto the couch next to Kurt, pulling the boy closer to him. Blaine placed one hand on Kurt's jaw, pulling Kurt towards him while placing his other hand on Kurt's back. Kurt responded to the touch, and gave the slightest of moans that sent tingles through Blaine's body. Kurt placed his free hand on Blaine's knee to steady himself, not wanting to let the kiss end.

"Hey gu- oh!" Alyssa had walked into the room, just to make sure they were ready to go onstage. What she hadn't expected was to see the two of them making out on the couch. The two boys jumped backwards from each other, blushing while turning to Alyssa.

"Hey Alyssa" Kurt said while clearing his throat. "Uh, what did you need?"

"Oh nothing, just came to let you know we're about to start in five minutes. Or should I tell Alex and Marcus that you two are too  _preoccupied_ to go on tonight and that their understudy skills are needed?"

Kurt glanced over at Blaine and smiled. As much as he wanted to, Kurt knew that making out with Blaine was not an option, especially not with who was going to be there that night. "We're coming, we're coming!" Kurt laughed, pushing himself up of the couch.

Blaine stood as well and gave Kurt's hand a quick squeeze before whispering in his ear. "I believe we should probably talk about that kiss later on tonight."

Kurt reddened. "Yeah, I think we should."

Blaine scanned the crowd right before he went on and saw something unusual. In the center of the first few rows of seats were men in blazers that looked really familiar to Blaine. He gasped when he recognized the faces. Jeff, Wes, Logan, Bailey, Trent, everyone, all of the Warblers, they were there watching the play. But how, Blaine wondered before he realized: Kurt. Kurt had to have called them and gotten them out here. He had to have pulled some strings to get them center seats in the front too, but it being Kurt, he figured the task wasn't too hard.

Andrea smiled from stage left as she watched the show. From the whispering she heard in the halls, it was being said that Kurt and Blaine had finally patched things up between them. Andrea hadn't needed gossip to tell her that though, the way the boys were acting tonight told her everything. All of their lines were coming smoothly and not a single note strayed from perfect pitch. Love, she thought, truly is a many splendid thing. Broadway gossip columnists and reporters were eating  _Phantom_ up. They loved it and only had good things to say about the opening night. She couldn't wait to see the opinions on tonight's show. If there was a dry eye in the audience in the end then they must have a small emotional center. Kurt's agony as the phantom mixed with Blaine's portrayal as Alyssa's love was amazing, especially when the backstage glances showed everyone how much they were in love with each other.

As the cast went out to take a final bow, Jeff whispered to the guys, "when Blaine and Kurt come out, we're yelling at the top of our lungs and jumping up and down." This is exactly what they did. The crowd went insane along with the group of guys in the front of the theater. They went on for five minutes after the curtain went down, whooping and hollering. "Come on guys," Wes said over the din, "let's go see our boys."

They busted through the thick backstage security and found the two missing Warblers in their dressing room. "Hey guys, we're here!" Bailey yelled as the group stormed into the room. Kurt whirled around at the mirror and broke into a huge grin before being suffocated in a group of hugs. Blaine walked in on the madness with Alex and Alyssa. "Looks like they made it through security" Alex laughed, I'll bet trying to get through Marcus and Steven was fun."

The group of boys turned around and advanced on Blaine and clapped him on the shoulder and hugged him as well. After the slight pandemonium Blaine asked, "how exactly did you guys get here?"

"Well," Logan began, "Kurt there called us a few weeks ago saying that the two of you were in this musical together and that he wanted me to round up all of the Warblers and come support you guys."

"Mercedes lent us her private jet." Trent laughed. "She's something else."

"That she is" Blaine laughed. A few weeks ago he thought, looking at Kurt. He still hated me then, but he did this for me. He looked over at Kurt and smiled. Kurt returned it and gave a small wink.

After they had said their goodbyes and ushered the group out of the door, Blaine and Kurt turned to each other. Kurt sat in a chair and Blaine took a seat on the couch. "So," Blaine began, "about earlier. If I did something completely out of line, I'm sorry, but I just needed you to know exactly how I felt."

"Blaine, I thought I hated you for five years, I probably did those first couple of years, but then, the dreams started occurring, and looking back I think they were my sub consciousness' way of telling me that I missed you."

"So that leaves us with one question. Where do we go from here?"

"I'd like to try us again, if that's ok with you of course." Kurt looked at Blaine sheepishly, hoping and wanting Blaine to say yes.

"Of course! I didn't come out here for nothing." He smiled at his friend, no boyfriend and felt happier than he had for five years.

"Well then, I propose you move into my apartment. I can't have my boyfriend living in a step up from a slum."

"Hey my apartment isn't that bad!" Blaine pretended to be hurt by Kurt's words. "But if you want me to, I guess I could relocate to Park Avenue."

"You'll be sleeping on the couch of course." Kurt smiled, knowing there was plenty of room to put a bed in his apartment, but wanting to see Blaine's reaction.

"What? Is there not enough room in your bed?"

"No, Snoball takes up quite a bit of room. He likes his space." Kurt couldn't keep a straight face and began laughing hysterically.

"Well he's just going to have to get over it." Blaine said, his eyes shining as he stood up. "Because he's going to have to share that space with me eventually." Blaine crossed to Kurt and cupped his chin. "I'm not going anywhere this time, I promise." He placed a small kiss to Kurt's lips before turning back to change.

"I think I could get used to that" Kurt said lazily as he began to change also.

Suddenly the entire backstage broke out in yelling and scuffling. Kurt poked his head out the door to see what was going on. Steven and Marcus were wrestling someone to the floor while Alex stood by with a baseball bat. Alyssa ran out, talking excitedly on her cellphone. "Yes, 1522 Broadway. Yes, yes, he's here, Ian Browning, yes, yes, ok thank you." She hung up and ran down the hallway to Kurt. "Kurt, get back in the dressing room!" She shoved him in and followed him while pulling the door shut and locking it.

"Alyssa, what's going on?" Kurt asked.

"It's Ian; he tried to get in again. Marcus and Steven have him pinned down and Alex is standing by with his bat.

"He just doesn't give up does he?" Kurt asked, turning to Blaine.

"No, but I guess he learned that from me." Blaine answered with a sad smile.

"No, don't start with that Blaine" Kurt said crossly. "You did nothing wrong ok? He is doing this because he can't understand the word no." Kurt grabbed Blaine's hand and pulled the shorter boy to his side.

Alyssa peeked out into the hallway. "The police are here. I'm pretty sure that there are no more warnings for Ian; they're cuffing him as we speak. Good thing Andrea got that restraining order against him, I have a feeling that this proves the Alex was acting in defense for Kurt." She opened the door and walked out, followed by Blaine and Kurt. They stood off to the side watching as the police hauled Ian into the back of the police car. "Well," Blaine said softly, "I guess that means that we don't have to worry about him anymore."

"Yeah, I guess that means we're safe."

"So" Alyssa cut in, "when are you two going to go public? You can't hide for forever. Broadway's hottest two stars do get quite a bit of publicity."

Kurt froze. What if his relationship with Blaine was frowned upon and the show suffered because of that? Kurt gave a small laugh, who was he kidding? Broadway was one of the least homophobic places in America, he and Blaine had little to nothing to worry about. He turned back to Alyssa and answered, "well, I guess just whenever the time comes. If people ask then I'll tell them the truth, but I'm not going to yell it from the top of the Empire State Building or anything."

"Well, I am" Blaine laughed. "Heck, I'll yell it just about anywhere." He smiled and squeezed Kurt's hand. "I got you back, that's the best thing I can ever remember happening to me."

Alyssa smiled and turned away from the two boys. She couldn't keep from smiling. Just six weeks ago Kurt was ready to tear out Blaine's throat and now, there they were, standing in the hallway, staring into each other's eyes, so obviously in love.

Kurt yawned and Blaine laughed a little at him. "Tired?"

"Yeah, I really should be getting back home. It's this never ending cycle of going to bed, getting up, the show, going back home and repeating everything. I so cannot wait until Wednesday when we finally get a break."

"Um, on Wednesday, do you think maybe I could move some of my stuff to your apartment?"

"Yeah, I'd like that. I'll move some of my stuff around so you can have some drawers until we can get furniture moved and such." Kurt smiled. Blaine was moving in with him. He was in  _New York_ and Blaine was moving in with him.


	11. Caught in the Act

The beginning of the week flew by in a jumbled mess of lines, music and stage lights. Kurt woke up on Wednesday with a headache and couldn't think of anything besides wanting to roll back over and go to sleep. Instead, he rolled over and glanced at the alarm clock. He jumped out of bed when he saw that it was noon and Blaine was going to be there in an hour to move a few things in. Blaine, Kurt smiled to himself, his boyfriend. He began his moisturizing routine and mentally began planning out his outfit. Kurt Hummel, outfit planner extraordinaire, was stumped. He needed something comfortable that showed of his newly gained muscle at the same time. There were piles of clothes strewn across the bed. Kurt stood, holding his head in his hands. Finally he chose his favorite pair of white skinny jeans, a dark blue Armani V-neck and his favorite pair of Coach sneakers. He chose the sneakers only because he didn't want to mess up his better shoes, plus comfort was the key for today.

The doorbell rang around 1:15 and he ran to the door and opened it. There on his doorstep was Blaine Anderson holding a box of his belongings and looking sexy as usual. Kurt kept himself from drooling, trying to figure out how Blaine could take a pair of jeans, a white long sleeve shirt and a pair of Converse and turn them into an outfit that showed his body off perfectly. Blaine smiled, "hey Kurt, you look nice. Wait, are you wearing sneakers? Be still my beating heart!" He laughed and gave Kurt one of his heart-melting smiles.

"Well I see you're still wearing the same old outfit you wore five years ago!" Kurt joked, motioning for Blaine to come in. He led Blaine to his bedroom where he had  _somehow_ managed to move some of his things out of the dresser.

"Two whole drawers to myself? Where did you find the room to put your stuff? Are you sure this is ok? I don't want to be a bother." Blaine started rambling, his face turning slightly pink.

"Blaine. Shush. It is fine; I simply moved them to my closet." He opened the box Blaine put on his bed and inspected the clothing inside the box. He grimaced as he pulled out three black tee shirts in a row. "Don't you have anything a bit more fashionable?"

"Kurt, those are my pajama shirts! Give a guy a break will ya?" Blaine laughed, pulling boxers out of the other box he had brought up.

Kurt gave a small gasp as he looked further into the box. "Blaine…is this…it is." Kurt sat there staring at the Dalton coat he held in his hands. "Why did you bring this with you?"

"It was my way of reminding myself of why exactly I was here. Can I keep it in the closet please?"

Kurt nodded and flung the door to the closet open. This time it was Blaine's turn to let out a strange gurgling sound. "Is that your  _Cheerios_ uniform?" Blaine's eyes looked as if his eyes were going to bulge out of his head as about a billion undapper thoughts flew through his mind.

"Yeah, what about it? I thought it might come in handy one day. Who knows?" He looked over at Blaine who seemed to be struggling to speak. "Blaine, are you ok?"

Blaine regained his composure and nodded, "yeah I'm fine, just didn't expect to see a cheerleading uniform in your closet."

"Well it still fits, actually it's a little tighter in the chest and thighs but I think that makes it look better on me."

Blaine knew he was staring, his mouth most likely hanging open as he stood there, holding a pair of jeans in his hand. He attempted to speak, but only made a gurgle as his mind raced through images of Kurt in a cheerleading outfit. His mouth was dry and he attempted to wet it before he spoke. "Oh really?" He asked, not quite sure what he should say, or if he should say anything at all.

"Blaine, why are you blushing?" Kurt was staring at him with one eyebrow raised.

"What? I'm not blushing!" Blaine quickly turned back to the closet and grabbed a hanger to put his blazer on. As he hung it up, he glanced at the Cheerios uniform again, thinking about how he could get Kurt into it.

"Blaine do you own anything that isn't jeans and tee shirts?" Kurt was rifling through the two boxes sitting on his bed. "You are  _not_ planning on putting this up on my wall are you?" Kurt looked at Blaine incredulously holding up the poster.

"What? You have to admit it's a boss Zefron poster!" Blaine smiled up at Kurt. "If it offends you that badly though then I'll put it into storage."

Kurt wanted nothing to do with the poster but Blaine looked so sad with those puppy eyes that he couldn't say no. "Fine" he sighed. "We can put it up over the couch, where you shall be sleeping."

"What? I thought you were joking about that! I'm not going to sleep on the couch!"

"Blaine I didn't say forever, just until we can get a bed for the spare room which is being used as storage as of now. I'm going to have to put some of my belongings in storage if you plan on actually living here."

Blaine's eyes brightened and he asked "but why can't I sleep in your bed?"

"Blaine that is extremely inappropriate! We haven't even been dating for a week yet!"

Blaine threw up his hands in surrender. "Fine, fine, but it isn't like we haven't shared a bed before." His eyes glinted dangerously as he gave a smile.

Kurt let out an exasperated breath. "Blaine, you know you can really get to a guy."

"I try." Blaine turned and began to walk out the door. "Could you possibly finish unpacking those last few items while I bring a couple more boxes in?"

"No problem." Kurt began digging in the boxes again as Blaine walked out the apartment door. Kurt unpacked more jeans and tee shirts and put them into drawers. He was going to have to take Blaine shopping, this was ridiculous, and the boy needed better clothes. He stopped for a moment as he pulled out a picture. It was a young boy standing with what appeared to be his parents. Little Blaine and his parents, they looked so happy together, but Kurt knew what happened in the end. He quickly dropped the picture back into the box when he heard the door open.

"I'm back!" Blaine sang into the apartment. He walked into the bedroom and plopped two more boxes onto the bed.

"I swear Blaine; if these are more tee shirts I'm going to burn them!"

"They aren't I swear! This is my shoe collection and other random things!"

"Moccasins, really Blaine?  _Moccasins?_ "

"Hey I like those shoes! Not everyone walks around in Jimmy Choo all day long!"

"The Converse are…acceptable, but did you really need a pair in every color?"

"Kurt, there's five pair in there, calm down. Plus, did you miss the Versace dress shoes?"

"They're from last year's line."

Blaine threw up his hand exasperated. "Does nothing please you oh great fashion god?"

Kurt looked up at Blaine, seeing a bit of hurt in the older boys eyes. "I'm sorry I didn't mean-I was just-I'm sorry ok?" He sat on the edge of the bed hoping Blaine wasn't too mad at him.

Blaine smiled and ruffled Kurt's hair "its ok, I just, well you know, fashion isn't  _that_ important to me."

"Obviously" Kurt said with a small grin, motioning to the clothes in the drawer. "But that's ok because somehow you seem to make everything look good on you."

Blaine smiled and pressed a small kiss to Kurt's lips. "You're amazing you know that right? You go from making fun of my clothes to complementing me about them."

"I try" Kurt smiled as he pulled Blaine to him, kissing him softly. "It isn't my fault you're so damn sexy."

"I'm definitely taking that as a compliment coming from you." Blaine smiled as he pulled the last pair of Converse from the box and placed them in the closet. "I think that's everything finally" he said stretching. "Oh one last thing, hold on let me run to my car."

Kurt sat on the bed perplexed. What on earth was Blaine up to now? He heard strumming and smiled as he realized Blaine had brought his guitar from the car. "Now I can serenade you all day" Blaine grinned as he leaned in close to Kurt. "Any requests? As long as it isn't Katy Perry."

Kurt thought for a moment, trying to come up with a song that Blaine might be stumped with. Should he go with an oldies song or some obscure indie band? "How about 'Keep On Loving You'?" Kurt grinned.

"REO Speedwagon it is" Blaine smiled as he began strumming. "You should have seen by the look in my eyes baby, there was something missin'. You should have known by the tone of my voice, maybe, but you didn't listen." Blaine paused for a moment then began strumming faster and broke into the chorus. "and I'm gonna keep on loving you, 'cause it's the only thing I wanna do. I don't wanna sleep, I just wanna keep on lovin' you."

Kurt was blushing slightly and he didn't know why. "I didn't know you liked REO Speedwagon."

"Classic rock has my name written all over it Kurt. Music today just isn't what it used to be." Blaine looked up and grinned before breaking out into "Poppin bottles in the ice, like a blizzard. When we drink we do it right gettin slizzard. Sippin sizzurp in my ride, like Three 6. Now I'm feelin so fly like a G6. Like a G6, Like a G6. Now I'm feelin so fly like a G6."

"Oh god" Kurt moaned, putting his hands up to his ears. "Promise me you will  _never_  try to rap. Ever again."

"As long as I can belt out "Any Way You Want It" whenever I want, you have a deal.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "If you wore vests it would be like I was living with Mr. Schue."

"Hey that's mean! Just because New Directions had to sing every Journey song doesn't mean they weren't an amazing band!"

"I didn't say that, just Journey reminds me of the time New Directions lost at Regionals."

Blaine smiled at Kurt "you always hated losing."

Kurt stood up from the bed. He began walking out of the room and asked Blaine over his shoulder, "would you like some lunch?"

"Mmm yes please, I'm starving!"

Kurt walked into the kitchen and started pulling out ingredients to make sandwiches. Blaine was moving into his apartment. He gave a small laugh, five years after he asked Blaine to move in and it was finally happening. He grabbed four pieces of bread and spread mustard on two slices and mayo on the others. He finished slapping the sandwiches together and returned to the bedroom, plates in hand where Blaine was sitting on the bed, strumming his guitar. Blaine looked up at him and started singing "tale as old as time, true as it can be. Barely even friends, then somebody bends unexpectedly. Just a little change, small to say the least. Just a little scared, neither one prepared, Beauty and the Beast." He stopped singing and smiled. "This song fits our relationship so well."

"Just because you're quite hairy doesn't make you a beast." Kurt laughed watching a scandalized look come across Blaine's face.

"Geeze thanks. I was meaning because we didn't quite start off on the right foot and everything."

"Blaine, I was joking. I understood what you were saying. Plus, you aren't  _that_  hairy."

"You little… can I just eat my sandwich please?"

Kurt laughed and handed Blaine his plate. Blaine took a bite and began talking. "So about me living here, do I get to decorate or can I bring my music stuff here or…"

"Blaine, you are  _not_ redecorating my apartment. I spent forever getting this color scheme together!"

"But Kurt, everything is white or grey! That's not a color scheme for anything but a funeral!"

"Well it goes great with my complexion! I mean just because it washes you out doesn't mean I should have to change my apartment."

"Our apartment you mean? Remember I'm going to be helping you pay rent from now on. I'm not some sort of charity case. I want some blues in here, maybe some red. If I'm going to be living here I want to be a part of the apartment, not a stranger sleeping on the couch."

Kurt stopped for a moment. He wondered if he could be any more selfish. Blaine was paying on the apartment now. They were living together and he needed to let Blaine an opinion too. "Sorry, I know, you just, it's well, it's me. But um, blue and red aren't bad. At least you weren't thinking lime green or hot pink or something."

"Oh how well you know me!" Blaine laughed pulling Kurt close to him and wrapping his arms around the taller boy's waist. He leaned in and kissed him, softly first until Kurt responded and his hormones jumped to life. He pressed Kurt back against the dresser and bit lightly on Kurt's bottom lip.

Kurt let out a small moan and pressed closer to Blaine, arching his back. Blaine seized his chance and touched the soft skin that showed as Kurt's shirt rode up. Kurt gasped into Blaine's mouth at the sudden contact of hot fingers against warm skin.

"God I've missed this." Blaine murmured around Kurt's mouth, his arousal rubbing roughly against his jeans. Instead of replying Kurt simply opened his mouth and captured Blaine's tongue, sucking on it erotically. Blaine moaned and pulled Kurt as close to him as he could, feeling Kurt's erection through his jeans. Blaine cupped Kurt through his pants, gently massaging him.

Kurt moaned in appreciation and peppered Blaine's neck with small kisses. Blaine slid his hands up under Kurt's shirt and broke away from him only long enough to pull the shirt completely off. Kurt stood there awkwardly for a moment as Blaine's eyes hungrily took in his body. "Damn you look good." Blaine pulled Kurt back to him, kissing the taller boy's neck, making his way down to his shoulder where he softly sucked on the sweet skin.

Blaine was even more aroused than he thought was ever possible, listening to the little noises Kurt was making. Blaine moved further down, kissing soft pale skin, then capturing one of Kurt's nipples in his mouth. Kurt's back arched involuntarily as he gripped the countertop, Blaine's hot wet mouth clamped down on him. Pleasure spread throughout his body and he wasn't sure how much longer he could stay standing before he collapsed to the floor in sheer pleasure. "No fair" he grunted. "Your shirt needs to be off."

He grasped the bottom of Blaine's shirt, ready to pull it off him when Blaine smiled up wickedly at him, then scraped his teeth across Kurt's other nipple. Kurt almost forgot where he was for a moment as pleasure seared through his body. Kurt jerked and attempted to pull Blaine's shirt off once again. This time Blaine was happy to oblige, letting his shirt join Kurt's on the floor.

Kurt looked hungrily at Blaine's tanned torso. His eyes roamed from the boy's strong, broad shoulders, sexy abs and that wonderfully teasing trail of hair that led down into his jeans. Kurt slowly touched Blaine's stomach, splaying his hands across his abs. He pulled Blaine to him, the skin on skin contact almost too much to bear.

Blaine pressed into Kurt, kissing him deeply, his hands moving slowly down from Kurt's hips to his thighs, resting on the zipper to his pants. "Blaine" Kurt somehow managed to talk. "We are  _not_  fooling around in the kitchen. I have to  _eat_ in here."

Blaine grinned, "fine, bedroom then?" "Yes. Let's go. Now." They were a tangle of arms and didn't stop kissing the entire time they walked the short distance to the bedroom. Blaine shoved Kurt on the bed and straddled him, tugging on the zipper of Kurt's pants. "Did you really have to wear these damn things?" Blaine grunted struggling to pull the skinny jeans off Kurt's hips.

"I look good in them!" Kurt huffed. "Well I think you'll look much better out of them." Blaine's voice had taken on a husky tone and his eyes had darkened with want for the other boy. Blaine groaned as the pants slipped down Kurt's legs and the pale skin was exposed. He leaned down and kissed a pale white hip, breathing in the light scent of Kurt's skin. God it was fabulous, his skin was soft and smooth and Blaine couldn't keep himself from licking it.

Kurt felt a shiver run down his spine as Blaine's warm breath washed over his skin. Then, oh hell, Blaine was licking his hip, kissing and sucking on it, so close to  _other_ parts of his body that Kurt wanted to scream. "Blaine" he moaned, unable to control himself. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"No Kurt, I am trying to  _pleasure_ you but you pick the most god awful outfits for me to attempt to get into." Blaine finally had Kurt's jeans down to his knees and was satisfied enough to continue. He planted another kiss to Kurt's lip, brushing Kurt's bottom lip sensually with his tongue. He reached a hand down between them and touched Kurt, holding his firmness in his hand. Blaine reached underneath the elastic of Kurt's boxers and began slowly stroking the other boy.

Then there was a knock in the door. "Fuck." Kurt was pissed. Who was at the door and what was so important that they needed to come to his apartment? Blaine nuzzled Kurt's neck. "We could just pretend like no one's home." "Mmm I like that idea" Kurt sighed.

The knock came again, louder this time, along with a muffled voice. "Come on you guys, I know you're in there!"

"Alyssa" Kurt grunted while rolling his eyes. "Come on, get up I have to answer it."

"But, can't we just ignore her" Blaine whined, pressing a chaste kiss to Kurt's lips.

"No, trust me, she isn't going away."

As if to accentuate Kurt's statement, Alyssa pounded on the door once again and her voice could clearly be heard through the door. "Kurt  _effing_ Hummel get your ass over here and open this door!"

Blaine groaned and rolled off of Kurt. "Let me at her so I can tell her what a cockblocker she is."

Kurt placed a hand on Blaine's chest while he zipped up his pants. "No you are not talking to her about this…or anyone for that matter."

Kurt opened the door and was almost hit in the face by Alyssa who was about knock on the door once again. "I knew you were here!" She smiled, walking into the room. She stared for a moment at the two disheveled boys in the living room. She took in Kurt's inside out shirt, red lips and messed up hair then looked over at Blaine who was shirtless and standing there with a semi-angry look on his face. "Oh, um sorry, was I interrupting something?"

"No" Kurt said quickly, shooting a glance at Blaine.

"Actually," Blaine said, unfolding his arms and walking towards Alyssa. "You did interrupt. I was moving in with my boyfriend and when you came calling we were quite intertwined in each other."

Kurt was bright red and was hoping that his carpet would turn into quicksand and eat him alive. "Blaine," he hissed, "what did I tell you?"

Alyssa stuttered 'well, um would you like me to go?"

"No" Kurt said, feeling bad the way Alyssa was standing there awkwardly. "Blaine, stop being rude."

"I'm not being rude. We get one day off in forever and I would like to spend it ravaging you."

"What if I don't want to be ravaged?"

"That's not what you were saying five minutes ago."

"Well that was then and this is now. Alyssa is here, she's our guest and we should respect her!"

Alyssa cleared her throat loudly. "Well um, this moment is awkward enough so I'm going to leave. See you tomorrow!" She ran out the door and let it slam behind her.

Kurt turned to Blaine, "what was that about?"

"What? I was just speaking the truth."

"Well now you've pissed me off and I'm going to go practice my lines."

Blaine watched as the taller boy walked into the study and closed the door. Oh Kurt, he thought, I missed you and your sassiness. With that Blaine went back to the bedroom to finish unpacking the last few items in the box. I'm going to get you back for this, leaving me all hot and bothered.

Kurt was pacing the study, thinking to himself. Damn you Blaine Anderson! Ugh, Alyssa, couldn't you have waited ten more minutes? Maybe it was better this way, he thought. He was still a virgin and he was terrified of actually going all the way with Blaine who apparently had a lot more experience than he did. Kurt slumped against the wall and held his head in his hands. Damn you Blaine Anderson and everything you do to me.


	12. A Lesson in Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh look, there's an Explicit rating on this fic for a reason!

Kurt sat against the wall for about an hour contemplating his options. He could either push Blaine away every time they went too far for his comfort, or he could man up and go through with it. He was twenty three for god's sake, not sixteen. He didn't know why he felt so uncomfortable about it, but he was and he was not having a conversation about his non-existent sex life with Blaine. He groaned and stood up walking over to his desk. He picked up his worn script when he heard a soft knock on the door. "Kurt? Please come out, I need your help with something." Kurt could almost see the lazy grin on Blaine's face. He knew exactly what Blaine wanted but knew that now wasn't the time, especially when he was fighting himself over the same exact thing. "Kurt, come on, don't leave me like this." Kurt felt bad leaving Blaine out there aroused when he knew he could walk out there and help him. "Kurt please I'm  _begging_ you." Kurt opened the door and poked his head out. "Blaine, I know that I left you aroused and all, but I need to rehearse and, and yeah. Also, last time I checked I was mad at you."

"I'm sorry" Blaine whined. "But she deserved it."

"Blaine, she was only meaning well. She probably came by to see if we needed any help. I just didn't appreciate you telling her what we were doing." Kurt was blushing, he could feel it, he just hoped Blaine wouldn't notice.

"Kurt, you mean to tell me that you are embarrassed for your best friend to know that you were having sex?" he grinned, raising one eyebrow.

"We were not having sex" Kurt hissed, trying to shut the door on Blaine.

Blaine stood there holding the door open looking strangely at Kurt. "Ummm then please explain to me what exactly was going on because last time I checked I was straddling you on your bed with every intention of fucking you."

"Blaine can we please not have this discussion right now? I really would like to go over my lines; I think I keep leaving a word out in scene two." He pleaded to Blaine with his eyes hoping the boy would let it drop. Unfortunately he didn't.

Instead, Blaine pushed open the door and stepped into the study. "Kurt you and I both know damn well that you are flawless in your performance, you've known the lines since the first week I'm sure. Why are you so averse to talking about us having sex?" Blaine paused, noting the scared look on his boyfriend's face. "Wait, Kurt are you still…?"

Kurt nodded his head, his face flushing. "Go ahead and laugh at me, I know you want to."

"Kurt," Blaine said, laying a hand on Kurt's arm, "I'm not going to laugh at you. I think, well I think that's great."

"How is that great?" Kurt stared at Blaine, mentally willing the boy to stop talking to him. "I'm Mr. Virginal over here and you just stand there, sex god extraordinaire."

Blaine laughed "wait, you think?" He couldn't keep himself from laughing more. "You think that I'm a sex god? Kurt I've slept with one person in my life and realized that it was one of the biggest mistakes in my life. I'm basically a virgin ok? Is that what all this was really about? You were scared that I was going to laugh at you?" He pulled Kurt to him, pressing him to his chest. "Kurt, I would never pressure into anything. I love you and that's what matters. When you're ready, you're ready. Just let me know when you're ready though ok, because trust me, I will be waiting." Blaine grinned against Kurt's neck pressing a small kiss there.

Kurt couldn't help but to smile. Blaine had said everything he needed to hear, talked away all of his insecurities, made him feel perfect. He kissed Blaine, one of his hands tangling in the dark curls on Blaine's head, the other one trailing down Blaine's chest. Blaine backed Kurt into the oak desk until his legs were flush with the side. He kissed Kurt deeply, one hand softly tugging on the silky strands of Kurt's hair, the other one making hot, lazy circles on Kurt's lower back. "Kurt, just let me know if you want to stop, I meant it when I said I wasn't going to pressure you." "Blaine, shut up and kiss me." Blaine took Kurt's tongue into his mouth sucking on it and nibbling softly on his bottom lip.

* * *

 

Then the doorbell rang. "Oh my effing god not  _again_. I swear to god that if it is Alyssa you can yell at her all you want ok?" Kurt was furious as he pulled away from Blaine for the second time that day. He stalked over to the door and flung it open with an angry "what do you want?" He reeled when he saw Alex standing there with a giggling Alyssa behind him.

Alex held up a platter of cupcakes. "We brought you guys a housewarming gift. I mean, technically you've been living here for a long time, but we wanted to do something special for Blaine."

"Unless those are chocolate, then you may take them back and leave unharmed."

"They're double chocolate." Alex said, smiling up at Kurt.

Alyssa was standing there holding a small box. "If you would let us in, you get to open my present" she said cheerfully.

Kurt stepped back and allowed them in. He turned around to see that Blaine had thrown a shirt on and was leaning against the wall. He graciously took the box and cupcakes from them and placed them on the table. Kurt sat on the couch next to Blaine as Alex and Alyssa took the chairs opposite of the two boys. Kurt grabbed the box off the table and opened it. "Champagne and cupcakes? You brought us champagne and cupcakes as a housewarming gift? How classy." Kurt was grinning at his two friends as he leaned back into Blaine.

"The champagne was to make up for earlier" Alyssa explained blushing, receiving a questioning look from Alex.

"Well then I forgive you" Kurt said, standing up. "Let me go get some glasses." Kurt walked into the kitchen, still a bit mad that he and Blaine kept being interrupted. He grabbed four flutes and walked back into the living room. Blaine uncorked the champagne and poured each of them a glass. They sat and talked for a bit about the show, Alyssa gushing over the different celebrities she had met so far. "But really though, I  _cannot_ believe Johnny Depp was there! I almost died."

Alex laughed "Alyssa, you didn't almost die, you made sure that every line was perfect and almost missed a cue swooning over him."

She leaned back in her chair smiling, sipping on her third glass. Kurt was sprawled on Blaine, half sitting, half laying, nursing his second glass. "Well I'm hungry and I think I'm going to fix dinner. Alyssa, Alex, would you like to stay?" Alex opened his mouth but before he could respond Alyssa was on her feet, pulling him up. "No it's ok, we should probably get going, we've imposed on you enough today, just wanted to stop and say hello."

"Well ok then, I guess we'll see you tomorrow" Kurt said, walking to the kitchen.

Blaine led Alyssa and Alex out the door then joined Kurt in the kitchen. He stopped in the doorway watching Kurt prepare dinner with grace and ease. He laughed at the pink apron Kurt had on. He walked up behind the slender boy and wrapped his arms around him, whispering in his ear "now that we're alone let's hurry up and eat because I really would like to finish what we started twice today."

Kurt shivered as Blaine's warm breath danced across his neck. "Dinner first, then dessert." He turned and planted a kiss on Blaine's lips. "Now get out of the way or else the chicken will burn." Blaine laughed but released Kurt and sat at the kitchen table.

Kurt put the finishing touches on the Alfredo and sat a bowl of salad on the table. "Dinner is served."

Blaine laughed and started singing, " _be our guest, be our guest, put our service to the test._ "

"No singing at the table!"

"Fine then. Wow this smells good." Blaine took his fork and dug into the chicken Alfredo. "This is delicious!"

"Blaine, must you speak with your mouth full? That is gross."

He swallowed and then spoke. "Sorry, it's just that the food is delicious and I'm hungry and I just really want to finish dinner." Blaine had a ravenous look in his eyes but Kurt had an idea that it wasn't for the chicken sitting on his plate. He swallowed and looked at Blaine across the table. His face flickered in the candlelight and he looked handsome as usual.

* * *

 

About ten minutes later of silence and chewing the dinner had been finished and the plates were in the sink. Kurt tried to wash them but had been pulled away by Blaine. "The dishes can wait; there are more important things to do." Blaine lovingly pulled Kurt to the bedroom and turned one of the lamps on. "I have a small question slash request." Blaine was blushing and Kurt raised an eyebrow at him.

"What is it?" He asked, fiddling with the comforter on the bed.

"Well, um, you see, I was, uh wondering" Blaine was stammering and for some reason this side of Blaine really turned Kurt on. He grabbed Blaine by the waist and pulled the boy to him. "What is it Blaine? Spit it out."

"Well you see I was wondering, hoping really that you would, uh, put on your Cheerios uniform and model it for me." Blaine wanted to run and hide. In the low light he was unable to decipher the look on Kurt's face at the moment.

"You want me to put on my Cheerios uniform? Have you been thinking about this all day since you saw I had it?"

"Maybe." Blaine said with a slight grin.

"Well I'll tell you what; I'll put on the Cheerios uniform if you put on the Dalton jacket."

"Kurt Hummel, are you telling me that deep down inside that angelic façade you have, there is secretly a very kinky person inside?"

"You're the one who requested I get in my old high school cheer uniform. I was merely going on with it."

"Then go get in the damn thing already!"

Kurt laughed and grabbed the uniform from the closet before heading into the bathroom to change. "When I come out you better be in that jacket, I'd prefer you put on a tie too." Kurt grinned as he closed the door. He was excited and nervous at the same time. He was about to lose his v card to his boyfriend while roleplaying in a really weird way. Guys dreamed of things like this, so why was he so nervous? He shrugged out of his clothes and pulled the uniform on. The pants were a little tighter in the hips and the shirt a little tighter in the shoulders, but damn did he look good. He took a couple breaths to calm his jittery nerves.

He opened the bathroom door and stopped in his tracks. There, sitting on the edge of his bed was Blaine Anderson. Of course it was Blaine, but it was gelled hair, dapper Blaine sitting there. He was wearing grey slacks, a white button down shirt, his Dalton jacket and one of those horrible red ties with the blue piping. Blaine's eyes raked over Kurt. He stood and crossed the floor to the taller boy and wrapped his arms around him, pulling him into a kiss. "And here I was thinking that you couldn't get  _any_ sexier and you go and prove me wrong." He attacked Kurt's body with his hands, touching the exposed skin showing when Kurt raised his arms to touch Blaine's gelled hair. "My god I always hated this hair. Your curls should be left free." He kissed Blaine deeply, holding his face in his hands. Blaine backed them to the bed and slowly lowered Kurt down onto the bed. "I was serious when I said I wouldn't pressure you Kurt."

"Blaine I swear you are the densest person I know" he said lovingly. "Do you honestly think I would be in my Cheerios uniform if I didn't want to?"

"Hey, I'm not being dense! I was attempting to be chivalrous."

"While you're straddling me? Chivalry does not become you." Kurt said, grinning as he laid a hand on Blaine's leg. "Now shut up and kiss me before I die of boredom."

Blaine leaned over and captured Kurt's bottom lip gently in his teeth, sucking softly on it. Kurt grabbed Blaine's tie and pulled him closer, kissing him, opening his mouth slightly, welcoming the taste and feel of Blaine's tongue against his own. Blaine gripped Kurt's sides and ran a hand over his stomach and chest. Kurt arched into the touch, Blaine's calloused fingers rough on his soft skin. He almost lost it completely when Blaine brushed a thumb across his nipple.

Kurt pulled Blaine's jacket off and started unbuttoning his shirt, tugging it out of his slacks. Blaine pulled away from Kurt long enough to drag the uniform top off Kurt and then began peppering his chest and stomach with kisses. Kurt gave up struggling with the buttons on Blaine's shirt and ripped the last few off. He pushed it down Blaine's shoulders, feeling the muscles in his arms. Kurt loosened the tie and pulled it over Blaine's head and tossed it to the floor. Blaine kissed Kurt again, working his way from his lips to his neck, placing small bites where Kurt's neck met his chest. Kurt couldn't help but to let out a small whimper as pleasure spread through him. Blaine pressed into Kurt, his hard on pressing into Kurt's thigh. His hands slid down until his fingertips brushed the top of the elastic of the uniform pants. He grasped the material and slowly slid them down. He felt Kurt tense and relax underneath him as he pulled them off the boy's legs.

Kurt fumbled with the button and zipper to Blaine's slacks, eventually getting them undone and slipped them down the boy's thighs. "Off. Now." Blaine smiled and stood up, dropping the pants and what was left of his shirt to the floor. He slid back on top of Kurt, only two layers of cotton separating them now. He pressed himself to Kurt, welcoming the feel of the soft, hot skin touching his. Kurt ran one of his hands down the line of fine hair leading into Blaine's boxers. Blaine gazed at him, his usually hazel eyes dark and heavy lidded, his lips dark red. Blaine felt his way down Kurt's body, from his chest to his thigh. He slowly moved his hand up and cupped Kurt through his boxers. Kurt let out a small moan and pressed upward into Blaine's hand. Kurt gave Blaine a devilish grin as he slipped a hand into Blaine's boxers and slipped his hand around Blaine's cock. Blaine moaned and buried his face in Kurt's neck. Kurt began stroking Blaine as Blaine slowly pulled off Kurt's boxers. Kurt lifted up and allowed them to be removed. Blaine stared down at the Kurt, naked beneath him. "You're so damn good looking" he growled, his hunger filled eyes ravenously taking in Kurt's body. Blaine didn't even wait for Kurt, but instead pulled off his boxers and threw them to the floor, impatient and wanting to be pressed to Kurt with nothing between them. Kurt licked his lips and stared approvingly at the boy straddling him. Blaine had always been good looking, but naked and vulnerable like this, he was sexy. Kurt pulled Blaine down on top of him, kissing him and pressing them together. "Kurt" Blaine moaned "I am going to die if we don't do something  _soon_." Kurt's eyes were dark and he raised his hips off the bed, offering himself to Blaine. Blaine kissed Kurt, long and deep while splaying a hand on Kurt's ass and pulling the boy towards him.

Blaine paused a minute and asked "are you sure?"

Kurt looked at him stormily and answered in a deep voice "if you don't start fucking me soon then I am going to kill you. Does that answer your question?"

Blaine grabbed Kurt's hips, pulling him closer and slowly and evocatively licked one of his fingers. "This may be uncomfortable at first" he murmured, sliding his finger to the edge of Kurt's entrance. He slowly slid one finger in. Kurt tensed, but relaxed and a small whimper of pleasure escaped his lips. Blaine slowly slid another finger in and Kurt began squirming beneath him. "Blaine, you are torturing me." Blaine simply grinned and slid another finger in. Kurt was whimpering beneath him and it took everything he had not to plunge into him. Kurt grabbed the sheets on the bed and let out a small moan as Blaine removed his fingers. "Kurt" Blaine said, looking down at the boy, "if it hurts or anything, just say the word and I'll stop." Kurt barely managed a nod, just wanting Blaine to be inside him. Blaine grasped Kurt's hips, angling him so Kurt could get the most pleasure. Blaine slowly slid inside of him, Kurt enveloping his cock.

Pain seared through Kurt and he almost cried out until, oh god, Blaine hit a spot that sent the most explosive pleasure he had ever felt through his body. Blaine watched Kurt's face as he went from pain to pleasure and slowly started sliding in and out of him. Kurt was gripping the sheets with white knuckles, bucking up into Blaine, moaning and humming. Blaine started going faster and faster, knowing he wouldn't last long. He slid a hand around Kurt's erection and his hand matched the pace of his thrusts.

Kurt felt the pressure building up and softly called out to Blaine. "I'm not going to last…" His voice trailed off as Blaine looked at him knowingly, going faster, both of them hovering on the edge of release. Kurt came first, calling Blaine's name, his come splattering Blaine's hand and stomach, but Blaine didn't care, he kept on thrusting until he was coming too, collapsing on top of Kurt, speaking his name, as the last waves of his orgasm ebbed off. "Damn" was all Kurt could utter, Blaine laying on him. "Mmmm, yes damn pretty much sums it up" Blaine laughed rolling to the side and wrapping an arm around Kurt. "So can I sleep in the bed now?"

"You are horrible at romance, you know that?" Kurt said playfully smacking Blaine's chest. "But yes, I think you can be allowed to sleep in the bed."

Blaine pressed a small sweet kiss to Kurt's lips as sleep washed over him. "Good, because I wasn't planning on leaving…ever."

"Oh great, I'm stuck with you." Kurt jokingly groaned. "I'm never going to sleep ever again am I?"

"Maybe…maybe not." Blaine slowly slipped off to sleep as Kurt brushed back the curls that had lost the hold of the gel.

"I'm not going to complain, you leaving is the last thing I want." He kissed the sleeping boy and rolled over, happier than he had ever been and slowly fell asleep, snuggled close to the man he loved.


	13. Now Everyone Knows

Kurt woke up sore and confused. What the hell had happened last night? He heard a soft snore in his ear and almost fell off his bed. He glanced over his shoulder to see the sleeping form of Blaine spooning him. Memories of the night before flooded through him. That's right; he had had sex with his boyfriend. He groaned and rolled over onto his back, trying to dispel himself from Blaine's grip. "Unf, where are you going?" Blaine sleepily asked.

"I am going to go shower because I feel gross." Kurt grimaced as he remembered falling asleep in Blaine's arms without showering meaning he still had dried cum and lube on him. That was another thing he was wondering about. Where the hell had the lube come from? Had Blaine planned on having sex with him? He glanced over at the sleeping boy and filed that question away for a later time. Kurt grabbed a towel and headed to the bathroom.

Kurt took a moment to look in the mirror and stared at his reflection. Sex was good for him. His complexion had a glowing quality to it, his lips were red as cherries and his high cheekbones still held a hint of flush in them. He looked lower and gave a small grimace at the hickey he saw on his neck. THAT was going to be hell to cover up before they left for the show today. He didn't really mind though, seeing that that it was from Blaine. He turned on the water and leaned against the wall as he waited for the water to heat up. Blaine Anderson was in his bed. No, his  _boyfriend_  Blaine Anderson was in his bed. He slid into the shower and leaned his head against the wall. Fate had a funny way of bringing people back together.

Kurt walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. Blaine was rubbing his eyes and struggling to sit up in the bed. "Morning sleepyhead" Kurt laughed while rummaging through a drawer for a clean pair of boxers.

"Morning" Blaine murmured, looking around confused before a look of realization hit him. He swiveled his head and his eyes widened as Kurt dropped his towel and stepped into his boxers. "Oh please Blaine," Kurt said at the look on Blaine's face, "it's not like you haven't seen me naked before."

Blaine just stared with his mouth opening and closing as he drank in the sight of Kurt standing in front of him. "Kurt," Blaine finally managed, "how about you come back to bed?" The look of shock was gone from Blaine's face and had been replaced by a look of lust.

Kurt smiled and began looking through his closet. "Blaine, we have to leave soon for the show."

"But Kurt, we can-I could, please?" Blaine was looking at Kurt with that damn puppy dog face that could melt even an ice queen's heart.

Kurt smiled and walked to the bed, leaning down to peck Blaine on the lips. "Come on, we have to go" he murmured around Blaine's mouth. Blaine's strong hands gripped Kurt's hips as he tried to pull the taller boy to him.

"I'd much rather spend the rest of the day curled up with you." Blaine was rubbing small circles on Kurt's hips and looking up at him with those gorgeous hazel eyes of his.

"I think it would be a bit obvious if we both missed a show. Plus, I am the star performer!"

Blaine smiled and pressed a sweet kiss to Kurt's stomach. "You haven't changed a bit I see."

Kurt laughed and pulled out of Blaine's grasp. "Never will" he smiled, rummaging through his closet once again.

* * *

"Seriously though, you should've seen his face when I opened the door! He was blood red!" Alyssa was laughing along with a group of actors who were surrounding her and Alex. "But really though, the most hilarious part of all was Blaine's face! He even yelled at me, something about ravaging Kurt, and then Kurt got all pissed and said there was no ravaging going on. So I just left, it was scary."

"So you decided to drag me into it?" Alex said, looking crossly at Alyssa. "I had those cupcakes and was going to bring them here and you waltzed into my apartment going 'oh look cupcakes to go with my champagne, let's go give them as housewarming presents to Blaine!' I should have known! No wonder Blaine was staring at me like I was the devil! Wait, that's why you wouldn't let me stay for dinner!"

Everyone was howling with laughter by this point, some even crying from laughing so hard. No one noticed as the two people they were discussing walked in the door. Alyssa continued the story, "but seriously, I almost died because all Kurt could do is stand there and stutter while Blaine ranted on about how I was interrupting."

"Oh really? I was ranting now was I?" Blaine called out, making the group jump.

"Oh, hey Blaine," Alyssa laughed nervously. "When did you two get here?"

"Oh, just now," Kurt said, staring at his hand disinterestedly.

"Oh well hey guys I was, uh well you see…" Alyssa faded off, her face blushing red.

Luckily Marcus saved Alyssa but pointing to Kurt's neck and exclaiming, "hey Kurt! Is that a hickey I see on your neck? Damn Blaine, one night and you're already all over him?"

Kurt turned as red as Alyssa and even Blaine blushed a little before retorting, "Well if you were in bed with a guy this sexy could  _you_ stop yourself."

Kurt stared down at Blaine, wanting to smack the grin off his face. "What are you doing?" he asked through gritted teeth.

"Just putting people in their rightful place," Blaine whispered, placing an arm around Kurt and leading him to their dressing room.

As soon as the door closed behind the two, the rest of the actors let out large breaths of air and began giggling like school girls. "Alright guys, pay up" Marcus told them. "I told you guys they'd totally be getting it on the first night they were alone together."

"Well obviously" Jackson, one of the stage crew guys said. "You could cut the sexual tension between them with a knife!"

* * *

Kurt was sitting in the dressing room, his head in his hands. "I give up, I can't face them again. I just can't believe you…"

"Wait, you're embarrassed you had sex with me?" Blaine's eyebrows furrowed as he tried to figure out what was going on in Kurt's head.

"No, no not that. I just didn't want the whole cast knowing like that. I mean, they didn't need to really know at all…" Kurt faded off, not knowing how to describe what he was feeling at the moment.

"Kurt, look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable; I just thought that maybe if I embarrassed them then they would let up on it."

"I understand, it's just…you know what, let's just forget about it. It's not a big deal." Kurt looked up at Blaine who was standing in front of him. "Trust me; I am  _definitely_ not embarrassed I had sex with you."

Blaine smiled and leaned down to press a kiss to Kurt's forehead. "That's good to know because I am definitely not embarrassed that I had sex with the most wonderful guy on the planet."

* * *

Kurt was staring at a recipe, checking ingredients a final time while stirring a pot of sauce on the stove. The show had been stunning as always and he had invited Alyssa and Alex over for dinner that night. He smiled as he felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist. "Have I mentioned you look adorable in an apron?" Blaine spoke, his warm breath rushing past Kurt's ear.

"Only about a hundred times… _today_." Kurt smiled tilting his head backwards, leaning it on Blaine's shoulder. Blaine pressed a kiss to Kurt's cheek before released the slender boy. "Blaine, out of the kitchen please, I am trying to cook!" Kurt shooed Blaine out of the kitchen with an oven mitt before opening the stove to check on the chicken. It was turning a golden brown color which meant it was almost time to add the sauce. He called out of the kitchen as a knock sounded at the door. "Blaine, get the door please! That's probably Alex and Alyssa!"

Blaine greeted their two friends and took their coats, hanging them in the small closet at the end of the hall. Alyssa held out a bottle of Pinot Grigio, smiling brightly, "I brought this as a peace greeting, since the last time we were here we had a few…problems. I hope it goes along with whatever Kurt is cooking."

"Chicken in garlic sauce, this will go perfectly!" Blaine held out a hand to take the bottle from Alyssa. "You two make yourself comfortable in here and I'll go put this on ice so it will be chilled for dinner."

Alex took a seat on the couch, falling into the plush leather while Alyssa grabbed the armchair. "Well at least no one is half naked this time" Alex grinned, propping himself up on a pillow.

Alyssa leaned down to pet Snoball who was mewling at her feet. "This is true, and we've actually been invited this time. I thought for sure this day would never come after that fiasco."

"Oh come on, you know we love you guys too much to shun you forever" Blaine smiled, sitting opposite of Alex. "Master Chef Kurt Hummel has told me that dinner shall be served in about ten minutes."

The three laughed at Blaine's horrible attempt at an English accent while Blaine picked up Snoball and stroked behind his ears. The kitten purred and curled up in his lap, content to sit there being loved on. They sat around making small talk, discussing the show and future plans. Alex was talking about how he planned on auditioning for a role in  _Chicago_  while Alyssa had an audition for the part of Elphaba in  _Wicked_. "What about you Blaine? Have you and Kurt discussed life after Phantom?"

"I think Kurt wants to push to get his screenplay looked at. It's amazing, he's going to be huge, I just know it. We also talked about him traveling and taking a break for a bit, but that was a while ago. As for me, I'd really love to just work on music, perform here and there; I just don't want to be apart from Kurt for long periods of time."

Alyssa smiled at Blaine whose eyes were shining bright with love for his boyfriend. "Blaine Anderson, do I detect a marriage proposal in the future?"

Blaine blushed, ducking his head before answering quietly, "I mean, we just got together, it's too soon to think about marriage. I mean, I love him and I know I want to spend the rest of my life with him, but he's still learning to trust me. He may not show it, but I know deep down inside there's a part of him that is terrified of me leaving again. I hate that I did that, that I made him so scared to love someone completely." Blaine dropped his head into his hands, blinking back tears.

Alyssa leaned over and put an arm on his knee, patting it softly. "Blaine, that's all in the past, give him some time, he knows you love him, you can see it in his eyes, everything will be fine. But you are right, it's too early to talk about marriage, but I better get an invite to the wedding when it happens." Alyssa smiled at Blaine who was wiping a small tear from the corner of his eye.

"You're right, I just get down on myself when I think about all of those years I wasted without him, I was so stupid."

Their conversation was cut short by Kurt's voice calling for them from the kitchen. "Ok guys, dinner is ready!"

Blaine ushered the pair into the dining area of the kitchen and they all took seats around the table as Kurt placed plates full of food on the table. Blaine poured the wine for each guest and set the decanter on the table.

The food was eaten in relative silence as they took in the taste of the chicken and asparagus. Alyssa was the first to speak, wiping her hands delicately on her white napkin. "Kurt, if Broadway doesn't work out for you, you could always become a chef; the food is wonderful."

Kurt gave a small laugh, "cooking is a hobby I enjoy on the side but I don't think I'd like it as a job. Plus, so far Broadway has been kind to me." He emphasized this statement with a sweeping gesture of his hand, pointing out the fact that he did live in one of the most expensive apartments in New York.

"What are you plans for after Phantom?" Alex asked innocently enough but receiving a small choke from Blaine.

Kurt leaned back in his chair, swirling the wine in his glass and choosing his words carefully. "I haven't really given it much though. Blaine mentioned that I should travel a bit but I really love New York. Maybe I'll get someone to look at my screenplay, who knows? Really though, it doesn't matter to me as long as Blaine is with me." He gave a warm smile to the boy sitting across from him at the table.

"Well I don't see why they wouldn't look at your screenplay and realize it needs to be used." Alyssa smiled, clasping Kurt's hand in hers. "You're a wonderful writer! In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they asked you to be in it too. Our little Kurt, movie star extraordinaire!"

"Now, now" Kurt grinned, "let's not get too ahead of ourselves, we still have plenty of Phantom shows to do."

"Oh I know, but it's always nice to have a plan."

* * *

The rest of the dinner flew by in the tinkling of silverware on plates and the soft chatter of voices. Alyssa and Alex had stayed for coffee while Blaine and Kurt cleaned up the dishes. The three kept up a playful banter, simply enjoying one another's company. At around midnight Alex and Alyssa headed out, hugging each of the boys in turn and leaving wishes of enjoyment for the day off tomorrow. Blaine shut the door behind them and turned to Kurt who was standing in the living room with two glasses and the rest of the Pinot Grigio. "I'd hate to waste such a good wine" he grinned moving to the couch.

Blaine smiled, sitting next to Kurt on the couch and taking a glass from his hand. "And the company isn't half bad either." He took the bottle from Kurt and poured their glasses full. "I would like to make a toast. To New York, and finding lost love, and being in the happiest place I could ever think of." Blaine held his glass out as Kurt touched their glasses together, the crystal making a small clinking sound.

Blaine slid an arm around Kurt's shoulder as he leaned into Blaine. "I couldn't think of a better place to be," Kurt whispered. "I meant what I said earlier too. I don't want to go anywhere without you. From now on I want us to be together."

Blaine kissed Kurt on the forehead and looked into his beautiful blue eyes. "Trust me Kurt, there's nowhere else I'd rather be than with you."

Kurt leaned up from where he was leaning against Blaine's shoulder and kissed him. He slid a hand around Blaine's neck, pulling the shorter boy to him. Kurt placed his glass on the table and slid his hand around Blaine's back. He pulled away softly and placed his forehead against Blaine's. "I love you, you know that? I think I always have, since the minute you ran with me down the hallway in Dalton. I don't think I ever really stopped loving you and that's why I could never move on." Kurt blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall. He had Blaine again and damn if he was going to lose him ever again.

Blaine cupped Kurt's face so that he was looking down at him. "I never stopped loving you either. Even though it took me a while to realize that I loved you, even after we broke up, I never could get you out of my mind. The reason Ian and I broke up, it was you Kurt. Being with him was nothing compared to being with you." A single teardrop was rolling down Kurt's face, years of heartache finally being released. Blaine kissed it away, brushing his lips across Kurt's cheek and eyelids. He softly kissed him on the lips, his slightly rough lips brushing against Kurt's soft ones.

Blaine released Kurt, picking up his glass and finishing off the little bit of wine left in it. He stood and stretched, yawning as he grabbed Kurt's glass and the empty bottle. "I'm going to go take a shower and head to bed, I'm sleepy."

Kurt stood and headed down the hallway. "I'm going to do my nightly moisturizing routine and I'll see you in the bedroom."

Blaine watched as Kurt walked down the hallway, smiling to himself. Yes, he could definitely get used to living with Kurt.


	14. Getting Used to it All

Kurt rolled over in bed, recoiling as he collided with another body. He cracked an eye open to see Blaine, still snoring, next to him. As his racing heartbeat stilled he wondered how long it was going to take before he would be used to waking up in bed with another person. It had been a week and a half since Blaine moved in and they were still getting used to each other's patterns.

For example, Kurt was early to bed, early to rise, enjoying every moment he could get out of his day. Blaine on the other hand? Late to bed, even later late to rise. Kurt had gotten up for a glass of warm milk the other night and found Blaine sprawled on the couch, book on his chest and glasses askew. He smiled to himself as he put the book and glasses on the coffee table and draped a blanket over his slumbering boyfriend.

Kurt rolled out of bed, his feet hitting the carpeted floor as he made his way to the bathroom to shower. He planned out his day as the steaming water rolled down his body, loosening the knots in his neck and back.

* * *

Kurt was sitting, bent over his laptop when Blaine walked into the room. He wrapped his arms around Kurt, kissing him softly on the neck, whispering in his ear, "good morning handsome."

Kurt smiled, leaning back into the embrace. "Morning yourself, sleepy head. Hungry?"

Blaine nodded, walking towards the kitchen and called out over his shoulder, "how do you want your eggs?"

"Scrambled please." Kurt turned his attention back to the computer where his screenplay sat, almost completed. Kurt stared at the screen, trying to figure out how he wanted the story to end. 'Everyone likes a happy ending right?' he thought as he typed the next line, inspiration hitting him finally. By the time Blaine was telling him that breakfast was ready Kurt had finished the script and was checking it over for mistakes.

"What's that?" Blaine asked, leaning on Kurt's shoulder.

"My screenplay, I finally finished it!" Kurt beamed, hugging Blaine around the waist.

Blaine smiled down at Kurt, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. "I'm so proud of you babe, I know you've been working hard on it. When are you going to send it out?"

"I need to finish revising it, then I'll send it to Michael to look at it and he'll send it where it needs to go."

"Someone will pick it up, I'm sure. You're amazing, you know that Kurt."

"Not as amazing as you." Kurt answered, leaning up to press a kiss to Blaine's lips. "Mmmm I smell bacon, I'm starving." Blaine laughed as he watched Kurt dash towards the kitchen and followed after him.

They sat in relative silence, eating breakfast in harmony while Blaine read the New York Times. "Hey look" Blaine said, pushing the paper towards Kurt, "there's an article about Phantom in here!"

Kurt looked at the paper warily. "Blaine, you know I don't read articles about myself."

"It's all good things, I promise, you want to read it!"

Kurt picked up the paper, scanning the page until his eyes found the title that read, "Good Things to Come for Phantom".  
 _Broadway's best-selling musical, The Phantom of the Opera boasts the talent of Broadway newcomers, Kurt Hummel, Alyssa Christian and Blaine Anderson. With all the publicity these stars have received the next question is where they will go from here. Rumor has it that Alyssa is looking into a part in Wicked. That leaves us with the show's leading men. Will they continue to grace the presence of the Broadway stage or will they go to the silver screen in Hollywood? All we know for now is that as the show goes into its last few months of production, we will keep our ears and eyes tuned in for more news on the elusive men._

Kurt glanced up from the paper smiling. "Since when did the  _Times_  start publishing gossip pieces?"

"I don't know, but Kurt Hummel, you're public wants to know what you are planning on doing with your life. You made it babe, you're living your dream." Blaine smiled, covering Kurt's hand with his own.

"No," Kurt said in a whisper, " _we_ made it. You and me Blaine, we're both in that article as  _leading_ men in one of the largest productions on Broadway.  _We're_ in this  _together_."

Blaine leaned over, kissing Kurt lightly, keeping his hand over Kurt's. "I love you. I'd give up everything to be with you, you know that?"

"I know Blaine. I love you more than anything else in the world, you are my world Blaine." Kurt kissed him back softly, enjoying the moment. It felt amazing to know that Blaine was his, after all they've been through he knew he'd never let Blaine go, ever.

Kurt pulled away, letting out a small sigh of contentment, picking up his fork and stabbing some eggs. "Thanks for breakfast Blaine, it's wonderful."

"Oh, it's nothing. Plus you know that when it comes to cooking, breakfast and cookies are about the only things I can manage."

"A quality I find quite endearing actually" Kurt said, playfully pushing on Blaine's arm.

"Well I find  _you_ endearing" Blaine bantered, stealing a piece of bacon from Kurt's plate.

"Hey!" Kurt shouted a look of shock on his face. "You stole my bacon! Give that back!"

Blaine smirked, holding the bacon slightly out of Kurt's reach. "You want it? Come and get it. Remember though, this bacon goes straight to your hips, at least that's what you always tell me, though by looking at you I beg to diff-ooof!"

Blaine was knocked back as Kurt flew into him, almost sending them flying to the floor. "Give me my bacon and no one gets hurt." Blaine stared in wide eyed shock as Kurt perched nimbly on his lap, holding a fork to his face.

"You, you wouldn't really poke me with the fork would you?"

"Hand me the bacon and you'll never have to find out." Kurt prodded the tip of Blaine's nose with a tine of the fork, warning him that he wasn't playing.

Blaine held his free hand up in mock surrender before bringing the piece of bacon up to Kurt's lips.

"That's what I thought" Kurt grinned before taking a nibble of the bacon. "Also, as long as I'm careful and exercise then I can eat the bacon."

Blaine's eyes flashed darkly as Kurt's tongue ran across his lips, licking the salt off as he settled onto Blaine's lap. "I could think of something you can do for exercise."

Kurt stopped caring about the bacon as he took in what Blaine said before capturing Blaine's mouth in a deep, passionate kiss. He ran a hand into Blaine's hair, tipping his head back as his mouth found purchase on Blaine's neck, sucking on the spot that causes Blaine to toss his head back and moan in a way that made Kurt never want to stop.

Blaine wrapped a hand around Kurt's back, pulling him closer and allowing his hands to slip inside Kurt's shirt, his fingers rubbing softly against Kurt's warm skin.

Kurt pressed into Blaine, his erection bumping against Blaine's and he let out a low moan, tugging on Blaine's lower lip with his teeth. Kurt slid a hand between them, cupping Blaine through his sweatpants while pressing hot kisses to his throat.

Blaine let out another moan, bucking slightly into Kurt's hand. Blaine's hands grabbed Kurt's hips as he pressed Kurt down, forcing their cocks to press together again. Even through clothing Blaine could feel how hard Kurt was and that turned him on even more. Blaine slipped a hand into Kurt's pajama pants, stroking his length while Kurt stroked him.

Kurt leaned his head against Blaine's shoulder as Blaine stroked him, squeezing lightly at the base. Kurt slipped a hand inside Blaine's sweatpants, cupping Blaine's balls and gently squeezing them, causing Blaine to moan against his neck. Kurt wrapped his hand around Blaine's cock and began to slowly jerk him off, biting Blaine's shoulder as Blaine worked up a faster rhythm with his hand.

Blaine buried his face in Kurt's neck, squeezing his eyes shut as he felt his orgasm build, He stroked Kurt faster, shuddering when Kurt would run a thumb over the tip of his cock. Blaine's toes began to curl as his orgasm started, pressing Blaine into a dark area of paradise.

Kurt felt Blaine tense beneath him, legs shaking slightly, and he began stroking faster relieved that Blaine was about to orgasm. Kurt let go of his own impending orgasm that he had been holding off and collapsed against Blaine as the blissful wave hit him. He was moaning against Blaine's shoulder which was red from Kurt's teeth and Kurt was coming, hot and sticky between them.

When Kurt's cum hit him in the abdomen, Blaine was groaning and releasing himself, over Kurt's hand and both of their stomachs. Blaine panted against Kurt, his breathing shallow and shaky. Kurt looked up at him with his bright blue eyes, smiling and whispered an 'I love you' before climbing off of Blaine and grabbing a few paper towels.

"I can't believe we just did that in the kitchen," Kurt said, wiping himself off before attacking the mess on Blaine.

"Huh?" Blaine asked, blinking at the slender boy, confused at his words."

"Blaine, we just jerked each other off in the kitchen."

"So?"

"So? Blaine we  _eat_ here."

"And?"

"And now every time someone comes over all I will think about is 'oh god, Blaine and I gave each other hand jobs in here.' What if my father sits in this chair? Or Finn?"

"Honestly Kurt, I'd laugh. They'll never know, and it's not like it's going to be there forever. These chairs are wooden, look you cleaned everything up."

Kurt threw his hands up in the air, exasperated. "I give up on you Blaine!" Kurt started towards the bedroom, shaking his head.

"But you still love me right?"

Kurt turned back towards Blaine, trying to keep a smile from crawling across his face. "Of course I love you Blaine, I'll never stop loving you."

"Ever?"

"Ever. I will love you to infinity and beyond."

"Toy Story, classy!"

Kurt smiled widely at his boyfriend. "I see you haven't changed a bit. You're still the five year old I've known forever."

"Not all of me is comparable to that of a five year old" Blaine said, pouting.

"Oh, I know. Your mental aptitude is that of a toddler."

"Hey! That's not nice! Take it back!" Blaine stuck out his tongue, forcing Kurt to laugh.

"Take me shopping later and I'll tell you all about how grown up you are."

Blaine raised an eyebrow as Kurt began to slink back down the hallway. "I accept this proposal Mr. Hummel!"

"I thought you'd say that." Kurt yelled down the hall. "I'm getting dressed and then I'll finish revising my screenplay while you get ready."

"Mkay, I'll clean up then head to the bedroom."

"Thanks, babe, I love you."

"Love you too Kurt, love you too."


	15. Secrets

Kurt awoke one morning to an empty bed. He had rolled over to cuddle up next to Blaine before forcing himself out of bed when he realized that Blaine wasn't there. Kurt rubbed his eyes groggily before sitting up and getting out of bed. Kurt walked into the living room, expecting Blaine to be curled up on the couch, clutching a book to his chest, but he wasn't there. "Blaine?" Kurt called out, padding his way into the kitchen.

Kurt began to worry about his boyfriend when he received no answer inside the apartment. He was about to pick up the phone to try and call Blaine when he saw the note tacked to the refrigerator. 'Kurt, I'm going out for a run, I'll be back soon. Love, Blaine."

Since when did Blaine go running, Kurt thought, wondering if he had been sleeping through these runs. Usually he was a light sleeper, last night had been an exception, Phantom had had some unforeseen issues including a cast member not showing up and a very nervous understudy, and Kurt had gone to bed exhausted. Kurt thought that had Blaine been doing any morning running, he would have woken simply from the missing presence of Blaine.

Maybe Blaine felt like he needed to lose weight or bulk up. Kurt thought he looked perfect, but he knew how Blaine got sometimes, down on himself, the mentality that he wasn't good enough had basically been beaten into Blaine by his father. Kurt was thankful for having a supportive family that he could go to with any problem he had.

Kurt made a mental note to call home later that day, just to check in with his family who he missed so much.

Kurt grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl on the kitchen counter and made his way to the couch, folding his legs beneath him as he picked his laptop up off the coffee table. He checked his email, opening the one from Michael Key, his editor and longtime friend.

" _Kurt, I was glad to see an email from you, telling me that you had finally completed the screenplay. I'm excited to look over it and send it to a few producers I know, I'm sure someone will love to shoot it. You're becoming a talked about person Kurt, you'll soon be an A-list celebrity. Promise me you won't forget me when you make it big. – Michael_

_P.S. I saw you're co-starring in Phantom with a Blaine Anderson...is it him?"_

Kurt smiled at Michael's words. They had both attended college together, and gone on to become close friends. Michael was one of the few people who had known what had happened to Kurt, mainly because when Michael told Kurt he had feelings for Kurt, he had to politely decline the offer. Michael had never pressed Kurt about it, chalking it up to Kurt just wanting to be friends. One day though, Kurt had awoken from a particularly bad dream and Michael had sat there with Kurt, wiping away tears and holding him as he recounted the story of his junior and senior years of high school.

Michael had sat there, listening intently to Kurt's story, simply being a shoulder to lean on. Kurt had appreciated Michael being there for him, a rock in the tempest so to speak. Michael never asked Kurt about Blaine, but was there for Kurt through the long nights and nightmares.

They had gone their separate ways, Kurt quit college to go off to Broadway and Michael graduated and went into the editing world, but they never had lost touch. Michael had told Kurt that if he never needed an editor that he'd love to take on Kurt's work, so here he was, revising Kurt's first screenplay.

Kurt opened a new email and quickly typed a response to his friend.

" _Michael, thanks for taking the time to revise this for me, I really appreciate it. If anyone decides to pick it up just let me know. Also, yeah, that's Blaine. He sort of came to find me here in New York to patch things up. It took a while, but we're back together. It's nice, you know how messed up it left me. Sometimes I wake up and I just sit there and wait for it all to be some weird dream. Let me know whenever you're in the area so we can catch up over coffee. Sincerely, Kurt."_

Kurt closed his laptop and walked into the kitchen, making himself a cup of hot tea. He leaned against the counter while he waited for the kettle to go off, closing his eyes and thinking about everything that had happened in the past few months.

He had landed a major role in a Broadway show, he had made so many new friends, and he got Blaine back. He realized that the small empty feeling he used to have inside him was filled again. He had never really realized the hole was there, but now that Blaine was back he realized how badly he had missed him.

The tea kettle began to whistle and Kurt took it off the stove and poured the steaming water over a bag of Earl Grey. He wrapped his hand around the mug and watched as a pigeon perched on the windowsill. Kurt thought back to Pavarotti, the warbler he had been assigned to take care of. He was still hit by a pang of sadness whenever he thought about the bird who had become his companion and confidante. True, Pavarotti's death had somehow caused Blaine to realize his feelings for Kurt, but Kurt missed the songbird and often thought about buying one for himself.

Kurt sat on a stool in the kitchen, bare toes curling around the lower rung as he inhaled the steam drifting up from his cup before bringing it to his lips and taking a sip. He sat there, content in the silence, picking up the newspaper to read. He was halfway through an article about problems in Iraq when he heard a key rattling in the door.

Blaine walked in and it took everything Kurt had to stifle a laugh at his boyfriend. Blaine's curls were plastered to his forehead with sweat and his face was bright red. Kurt sucked in a sharp breath though when his eyes roamed to Blaine's damp tee shirt that was clinging to his muscles. "How was your run?"

Blaine smiled, "good, I feel a lot better. Ugh, I need to go take a shower though, I feel nasty."

"I bet you smell pretty gross too." Kurt grinned, letting out a laugh when Blaine pouted.

"Well, thanks you're so kind" Blaine said, rolling his eyes at Kurt. "I'll see you in a few minutes when I'm more presentable for you Mr. Hummel."

Kurt just smiled and returned to his tea and newspaper as Blaine headed towards the shower.

* * *

Kurt was reading the editorials when a pair of strong arms wrapped around his waist. "You look really good in sweatpants you know that?" Blaine breathed down his neck, pressing a quick kiss to the top of Kurt's head.

Kurt laughed as he tilted his head back to press a quick kiss to Blaine's lips, Blaine's damp curls pressing against his forehead. "Even though I beg to differ, I appreciate the sentiment."

Blaine let go of Kurt and walked to the fridge, pouring himself a glass of orange juice and sitting at the island across from Kurt. "So what are you doing today?"

"Since we have the day off I'm just planning on lounging around, you know, cleaning,  _laundry._ "

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Blaine asked, his face scrunching up.

"That means that maybe you could come learn how to use the washing machine."

"Kurt. You  _really_ want me to wash clothes? Knowing me I'd put a shirt of yours in there and it'll be dry clean only and I'll ruin it."

"True. Well fine. Do whatever you do on free days then." Kurt shook his head as Blaine smiled and rubbed his hands together like a child. "No climbing on the couch though. You almost tore the upholstery last time!"

"Fine" Blaine pouted. "Fun ruiner."

"I am not a fun ruiner. I just like to keep things nice."

* * *

Kurt was on the third load of laundry when he heard Blaine singing in the living room.

" _I wanna be the very best like no one ever was. To catch them is my real test; to train them is my cause."_

Kurt couldn't believe what he was hearing. Blaine was singing the Pokémon theme song. He walked down the hallway from the laundry room and poked his head around the door. Blaine was standing there, Game Boy in hand and dancing around the living room.

" _I will travel across the land, searching far and wide, each Pokémon to understand, the power that's inside. Pokémon, it's you and me, I know it's my destiny. Pokémon. Oh you're my best friend, in a world we must defend. Pokémon, a heart so true, our courage will pull us through. You teach me and I'll teach you. Pokémon! Gotta catch 'em all! Every challenge alone the way, with courage I will face. I will battle every day, to claim my rightful place. Come with me, the time is right, there's no better team. On and on, we'll win the fight; it's always been our dream! Pokémon, it's you and me, I know it's my destiny. Pokémon. Oh you're my best friend, in a world we must defend. Pokémon, a heart so true, our courage will pull us through. You teach me and I'll teach you. Pokémon! Gotta catch 'em all!"_

Blaine fell to the couch on the last all and Kurt accidentally let out a small laugh. Blaine whipped around on the couch, looking like a small child that had gotten caught stealing from the cookie jar.

"Oh my god Kurt, how much of that did you see?"

Kurt grinned at Blaine, raising an eyebrow slightly. "Oh, just enough to know you can dance like a fool if you try." He walked over to the couch and set next to Blaine. "You're so cute when you get excited about things, even if they're super dorky. Honestly Blaine, who plays Pokémon anymore?"

"I do!" Blaine huffed, looking a bit hurt. "I know! You're like the Pikachu to my Ash!"

"Blaine, first off, you're not using Pokémon as a metaphor for our relationship. Ever. Secondly, as I recall, Ash was Pikachu's trainer and I'm pretty sure they weren't attracted to each other."

"Well, no, but they were best friends! Did you see the episode where Pikachu goes off with the other Pikachus and Ash is all sad?"

"No Blaine, guess I missed that one. And all the other ones while we're at it."

"Wait, you really didn't like Pokémon?"

"No Blaine, I didn't. I liked Disney Princesses, tea parties and tiaras."

"Oh. Well you should play Pokémon with me sometime. It's fun!"

"We'll see. Blaine, what do you wanna do for dinner tonight? I was thinking we could go out to eat and maybe watch a movie here afterwards."

"Sounds perfect. What movie were you thinking about?"

"When Harry Met Sally."

"Really Kurt? You still plan on being Meg Ryan?"

"Until the day I die."

* * *

They sat in a somewhat secluded booth in O'Hara's, an Irish pub they had both grown to love. Kurt enjoyed the different salads they had while Blaine went for his favorite thing on the menu, Irish stew served in a bread bowl.

"So have you heard anything more about your screenplay?" Blaine asked while shoveling food in his mouth.

"Blaine, I just sent it off two days ago! But Michael said he likes it so far and he thinks it'll go places. And Blaine, do you have to talk with your mouthful?" Kurt shook his head at his boyfriend; Blaine really hadn't changed a bit.

Blaine swallowed before saying, "well that's good right? You know that he likes it?"

"Yes Blaine, it's a good thing."

* * *

Kurt sat on the couch, feet tucked beneath him and head leaning on Blaine. The movie was playing but Kurt wasn't really paying attention to it; he knew it by heart anyway. He was thinking about how warm Blaine was against him, how it was nice to just sit next to him and watch a movie. Kurt didn't know what he'd do without Blaine now. He smiled slightly as he thought about the future. He loved Blaine and didn't want to go anywhere without him. "Blaine," he spoke softly leaning his head up to look at the other boy.

"Hmm?"

"When you think about the future, what do you see?"

Kurt thought Blaine blanched for a second and a scared feeling came into his body.

Blaine grabbed Kurt's hand and turned to face him, the movie forgotten. "Kurt, when I think about the future, I think about how no matter what I want to be with you. No matter where we go or what we do, I want us to be together."

"Oh." Kurt felt relieved immediately. "That's what I want too Blaine, I never want us to be apart."

Blaine smiled and pressed a sweet kiss to Kurt's cheek before turning back to the movie.  _That was a close one Blaine, you've got to keep your wits about you if you're going to pull this off correctly you dummy._  Oh great, now his inner voice even thought he was an idiot. Oh well, he knew what he had to do, and he knew he had to do it soon.


	16. What He Has Planned

"Mercedes, I'm starting to get worried."

"Kurt darling, it's probably nothing."

"He's never done this. He won't answer his phone, he avoids my questions. 'Cedes, what if he's cheating on me?"

"Why would he get back with you just to cheat on you?"

"I don't know. It's just weird. Like he just decided to start taking these morning runs and they've progressively gotten longer. What am I supposed to think?"

Mercedes paused on the other end of the phone and breathed in deeply. "I don't know what to tell you. Maybe he's having problems with something. Just let it play out. I know it's hard Kurt, but maybe he just needs space."

Kurt sighed and leaned against the wall. "I guess you're right, I'm just worried that's all."

"I know, it'll be ok, I'm sure of it."

"I wish I was as confident in this as you are 'Cedes."

"I'll be confident for the both of us."

* * *

Blaine finally returned to the apartment around five in the evening. Kurt glanced up from the couch where he was absorbed in a book and gave a quiet hello. Blaine was dressed in jeans and a dress shirt and Kurt didn't even have the energy to ask where his running clothes were.

"Hey Kurt, I'm home." Blaine walked over to the couch and pressed a soft kiss to Kurt's head.

"Hey Blaine" Kurt mumbled, keeping his eyes on his book.

Blaine wrapped his arms around Kurt but pulled back when Kurt tensed in the embrace. Blaine walked around and sat next to Kurt on the couch. "Babe, what's wrong?"

"Nothing" Kurt answered, never glancing up from his book.

Blaine placed a hand over Kurt's and the latter pulled his away quickly. Kurt closed his book loudly and turned towards Blaine who was staring at him with hurt in his eyes.

"Do you really want to know what's wrong? Like you can't figure out why I won't talk to you! I-I can barely look at you anymore Blaine!"

"Kurt, what's going on? I don't understand why you're so upset. Please, just talk to me."

"Blaine are you really that fucking stupid?" Kurt's words spat venom at a reeling Blaine. Kurt rarely cursed, much less used the word fuck.

"Kurt, I really don't understand what's going on. Is it the runs? Is that what this is about? I told you that I just wanted to get into shape."

"Yes, Blaine" Kurt said, eyes narrowing. "It's the runs. If you think that I'm just going to sit here and play housewife all day long while you go out doing whatever the hell it is you're doing then you're sorely confused."

"Kurt, I told you I was going out to lose weight, so many of the other actors are-"

"Yes I know what you said, but Blaine,  _darling_ ," Kurt drew out the last word in a mocking tone, pausing before continuing to rail on Blaine. "The thing you seem to be forgetting is that most people don't run for hours and hours."

"I told you I ran into my friend-"

"Actually Blaine, you told me nothing. Whenever I ask you where you've been you conveniently ignore me."

Blaine stood there, rooted to the spot as he tried to think of what to say next. "Kurt, I-"

"Just leave your excuses in your head. I don't care anymore. I'm going out with Alyssa for dinner. Sadly I can't kick you out since you pay for the apartment but I'd really appreciate it if you'd vacate yourself from my bedroom until you get your shit together. I don't know what's going on or who you're seeing" he held up a hand here to stop Blaine from speaking. "I don't want to hear your excuses Blaine. If you still want to talk later maybe we can. Maybe."

* * *

Kurt walked out the door and shut it heavily before sinking to the floor in the hallway. He let the tears slide silently down his face as he held his head in his hands. He should have known better. There was always a catch. He should have realized that it was too good to be true that Blaine and he would get back together and live happily. Kurt let his head rest on the door momentarily as he thought about how he had thought he had found his ever after. Apparently they really were just for Disney movies.

* * *

Blaine sank onto the couch, eyes tearing up and hands shaking. How had everything gone so wrong? He thought he had been careful, though Kurt really hadn't noticed that he had been spending more and more time out and he swore he had told Kurt he had ran into an old friend and they had started going out for coffee. Or wait, maybe he hadn't told that to Kurt because he was afraid that something like this would happen.

Blaine knew his time was almost up and that he was going to have to figure out what to do soon. First though, he needed to talk to Kurt and straighten things out.

* * *

"He didn't even have running clothes on Alyssa. He showed up at home in jeans and a button down. He had that stupid Dalton bag slung over his shoulder and whether there were clothes in it or not, well to be honest I don't really care."

"Maybe he ran into someone he knew?"

"And he just happened to have extra clothes with him?"

"Maybe he was meeting a friend for coffee."

"Yes, a  _friend_ alright."

"Kurt, you don't honestly think he's cheating on you do you?"

"What else am I supposed to think Alyssa? He's running around behind my back and when I ask him where he's been he either gives me these weird cryptic answers or he just pretends I haven't said anything at all."

Alyssa sat at the table quietly before raising the same question Mercedes had asked earlier. "What I don't get though is why Blaine would go through all the trouble to get back with you to only go cheat on you. It doesn't add up."

"I know. On one hand I feel bad because I flew off the handle at him today, but on the other hand I want to kick him to the street for being such an ass."

"Well you did say he wanted to talk it out. Remember how your lack of talking to each other was the reason you guys broke up all those years ago."

Kurt sighed, "I know, that's the problem, I feel like it is senior year all over again."

* * *

Kurt was about to unlock the door to the apartment when he heard muffled voices from inside. He quickly pressed his ear to the door. He could hear Blaine's voice and another male inside the living room.

"I know, I know" Kurt heard Blaine say. "We just can't let Kurt find out."

"He won't" the other voice said, and Kurt felt the anger bubble up inside him and he began to see red. Kurt thrust the key into the lock and turned the knob before throwing open the door.

A very surprised Blaine, Nick and Jeff were seated in the living room and were staring at Kurt who seemed to be almost foaming at the mouth.

Kurt stood silently in the doorway. Nick and Jeff. What were Nick and Jeff doing here? "Um hey guys" he said sheepishly, almost not believing that he had just made an idiot of himself.

"Hey Kurt!" Jeff smiled, standing up to hug his old friend. "Nick and I ran into Blaine today and he invited us over."

"Oh" was all Kurt could say. He was really hoping that this was all a bad dream or that if it wasn't the floor would turn to quicksand and swallow him whole. "I, uh, I was out at dinner with my friend Alyssa."

"Yeah, that's what Blaine was telling us." Nick said, shaking friends with his old Warbler buddy. "Nice place you guys have got here."

Blaine laughed before he spoke. "Kurt had it before I got here, he just allowed me to move in and put a few of my touches to it."

"He helps pay the rent; I felt it was the proper thing to do."

Jeff held his hand over his heart and fell to the sofa. "I think I'm having a heart attack! Kurt let someone help him decorate! He must  _really_ love you Blaine."

"That or Blaine's just really persuasive" Nick interjected before looking at Jeff and mumbling "in bed of course" quietly under his breath before breaking out into a huge grin as Jeff burst into loud peals of laughter.

"Oh my god, that is enough from the both of you!" Kurt exclaimed, turning slightly pink. He glanced towards Blaine who was smirking with a playful glint in his eye.

' _Oh no you don't'_  thought Kurt while shooting a warning glance at Blaine.

Blaine, of course, ignored Kurt and grinned as he replied to the laughing boys. "If you really must know, I am  _quite_ persuasive in the bed, especially when it comes to that spot on Kurt's neck right below the ear."

Kurt blushed as both of the boys fell silent, looked between Kurt and Blaine and then at each other before busting out into another series of loud guffaws. "Oh. My. God. Blaine!" Jeff said between laughs. "Kurt is so going to kill you when we leave."

"That's ok" Nick exclaimed, clapping Jeff on the shoulder. "Blaine will just suck on that special spot and all will be ok!"

"That is if Blaine isn't on the couch tonight!" Jeff said, pointing towards the anger that was shining on Kurt's face.

The laughter of the two boys died down as Jeff realized how mad Kurt really seemed to be. "Well Nick, I think this is our cue to leave these two to settle whatever is between them."

They gathered their coats and walked to the door, pausing before crossing the threshold. "Blaine, good luck, with um, everything." With that they were out the door and disappearing towards the elevator.

* * *

Blaine steeled himself as Kurt turned towards him, the door clicking ominously behind him. "Kurt, I-"

"Not now Blaine. I'm going to change into my pajamas and then come back out here and if you want to discuss this and everything else then be seated on the couch when I get back."

* * *

Kurt walked back out into the living room dressed in grey sweatpants and an old tee shirt of Blaine's. He had no idea why he put it on, other than it was on the top when he opened his drawer.

Blaine glanced up and saw that Kurt was wearing one of his tee shirts. That was a good sign right? Or maybe Kurt didn't remember it was his, but then again Kurt would never buy a shirt like that.

Kurt sat in to oversized chair across from Blaine who was seated on the couch. "Ok Blaine, first off, we're going to ignore your comment earlier tonight because I'm pretty sure Nick and Jeff were the biggest cockblockers at Dalton and they deserved every bit of that comment tonight. Now, about my outburst today, I apologize for yelling and all, but I feel like I had and still have a good reason to be suspicious. SO, here's how it is. Where have you been going when you said you were going running?"

Blaine took a deep breath before beginning. "At first, when the runs were only an hour or so, I really was just running. Then they progressively got longer after I added in a bit of weight training at the Y and then they got really long when Alyssa asked me for help."

"Help with what?"

"Alex's surprise birthday party."

"Why couldn't you tell me about that?"

"Well, um, Alyssa knows how excited you get when things are being planned, and um, she really wanted to plan it by herself."

Kurt was a little hurt, his best friend didn't want him helping with the party, hadn't even mentioned it to him that night at dinner. "But you could still have told me."

"I know babe, but I wanted to make sure everything was set before I told you, that's why I was so secretive. I'm really sorry about that. I'd never even think of cheating on you babe."

Kurt stood and crossed slowly to the couch, folding himself against Blaine, a small tear escaping his eye and rolling down his cheek. "I just, I was scared Blaine. We have a history of not telling each other things. I was so worried that I was going to lose you again."

Blaine wiped away the tear with the pad of his thumb. "Kurt, I would never cheat on you. When you said that to me today, it felt as if my heart were breaking in two. You are my world, what happened those years ago, that almost killed me too."

"Blaine, I spent the past five years of my life trying to erase Lima and Westerville from my life. I went to college for two semesters before I quit and packed for New York. Burt and Carole were so upset; I think dad was upset that I didn't get a degree. I lived in the cheapest apartment that I could without having my skin crawl. I worked my ass off and because of that I hardly called home. It was my excuse not to get in touch with Lima, most times mom and dad and Mercedes called me. Actually, everyone who wasn't dad and Carole called me. Then one day it hit me; I wasn't running from Lima, I was running from myself. No matter what, Blaine, I had to come to the realization that I missed you." Kurt finished, a bit out of breath, and leaned back against the couch.

"I-I ran too Kurt. Remember when we first met and I told you that I ran from my old school? Kurt, all I was ever good at was running. After we graduated I ran away to college, I hid amongst my classmates and the people I boarded with. I never forgot you, I'd never forget you. You know I dated Ian, but other than that I lived alone with myself and the memory of you. It got to the point that I knew I had to find you, to tell you the truth. You had changed your number so I tried finding out where you had gone from your dad but as soon as I said my name he hung up on me. I had a similar response from Finn. Finally I got in touch with Mercedes, thankfully her number hadn't changed. After a long explanation and a bit of chewing out she told me that all you had told her was that you had moved to New York and had auditioned for a part in  _Phantom._ "

"She told you all that?"

"Yeah, after about two hours of my groveling and begging and saying sorry. Then I came out here to find you. I was lucky that they were holding auditions. I honestly didn't expect to be hired, I was just hoping for a glimpse of you. Now, here we are, in the midst of a huge argument and hopefully we're going to make it through because I really do love you Kurt."

"I love you too Blaine. I'm sorry that I freaked out."

"You had the right to. I was being secretive and wasn't answering your questions."

"I do have one more question. When I came home tonight you were telling Jeff and Nick not to tell me about something, was that about the party?"

"Yeah, I wanted to be the one to tell you about it."

"Oh, ok" Kurt leaned against Blaine, snuggling into his shoulder. He tilted his head upwards and pressed a kiss to Blaine's lips. "I promise not to freak out anymore without trying to talk to you first."

Blaine kissed Kurt back while placing an arm around Kurt's shoulder. "And I promise to tell you what I'm doing, even if I'm supposed to keep you in the dark."

"So when's the party supposed to be?"

"The next free day we have, next Wednesday. They're going to have the party at Alyssa's parent's villa."

"That was nice of them to lend that for a party. Will they be in attendance?"

"Why of course! They simply cannot wait to meet you. "

"Wait, you've met the Carson's?"

"Yeah, party stuff, you know."

"Oh, yeah." Kurt yawned and pressed closer into Blaine before drifting off. Blaine smiled down at Kurt's sleeping form before picking him up and carrying him to the bedroom.


	17. Surprise

"You could have at least said something!" Kurt exclaimed, looking at Alyssa pointedly.

"Kurt, I'm sorry! I told you to talk to him at least! I told you it would all be ok!"

"If I didn't love you so much…"

"I know, I know!" Alyssa laughed, throwing her hands up in the air. "Come on Kurt; let's finish up lunch so you can go get ready for the party!"

"Yes,  _mom_." Kurt laughed, rolling his eyes at his friend.

* * *

Kurt unlocked the door to the apartment and was greeted by darkness and the flicker of half a dozen candles set around the kitchen. "Blaine?" he called out softly, wondering what the hell was going on.

Kurt stumbled into the living room, taking a quick step back when he realized Blaine was sitting on the couch, guitar in hand.

As soon as Blaine saw Kurt he began quietly strumming, his hands shaking slightly as he stared at Kurt and began to sing.  _"Forever could never be long enough for me, to feel like I've had long enough with you. Forget the world now, we won't let them see, but there's one thing left to do. Now that the weight has lifted, love has surely shifted my way. Marry me, today and every day. Marry me, if I ever get the nerve to say hello in this café, say you will."_

Kurt felt his heart skip a beat, his bag falling to the floor with a soft thump on the carpet. Blaine was singing to him. A proposal. Blaine was proposing to him. Kurt felt a tear began to slide down his cheek, watching Blaine close his eyes as he continued to sing.

" _Together could never be close enough for me, to feel like I am close enough to you. You'll wear white and I'll wear out the words 'I love you', and 'you're beautiful'. Now that the wait is over, love has finally shown him my way. Marry me, today and every day. Marry me, if I ever get the nerve to say hello in this café."_

Blaine glanced up at Kurt, his heart clenching in his chest as he watched a single tear escape Kurt's eye and roll down his cheek. Blaine was pouring every bit of love for Kurt into the song, needing Kurt to see that Kurt was all he needed to be happy in life. As long as he was with Kurt then everything was right in the world.

" _Promise me, you'll always be, happy by my side. I promise to, sing to you, when all the music dies. Marry me, today and every day. Marry me, if I ever get the nerve to say hello in this café, say you will. Mmmhhmmm say you will. Marry me."_

Kurt watched as Blaine's fingers stilled on the guitar, the last chord dying off into the silence of the room. Blaine slid the guitar next to him as he stood, then knelt in front of Kurt on one knee. He slid a box out of his pocket, fumbling with it for a moment before opening it to reveal a platinum band. "Kurt," he said, clearing his throat before he continued. "Kurt, you are the most perfect person I could ever ask for. I love you more than any other person or thing in the world and I want to spend eternity with you. We've had our share of problems, but I want to put everything behind us and I know that no matter what happens next, I want to be there with you. I love you Kurt, so what I really want to know, Kurt Elizabeth Hummel, is will you marry me?"

Kurt stood there in a shocked silence, his heart beating against his ribcage so hard that he thought he might fracture a rib or two. Suddenly he was throwing his arms around Blaine, hugging him tightly and kissing him, whispering "yes, of course I'll marry you!" against Blaine's lips. Blaine pulled back from the embrace, pausing only to slip the band out and slide it on Kurt's right hand, smiling as tears streamed down his face.

"I love you" Blaine whispered against Kurt's neck. "I love you."

Kurt pulled away from Blaine after a while, still grasping onto Blaine's hands. "Is this why you've been so secretive? Has this been your plan all along?"

Blaine gave a sheepish smile as he mumbled a yes.

"Blaine Anderson, I should strangle you here and now! But damn, I love you too much. So is the birthday party real or?"

Blaine grinned wickedly as he looked up at Kurt. "I guess we'll just have to go look and see."

* * *

Kurt stared up at the large villa where Alyssa's parents lived. The Carson's villa was a rambling two story located in a spot of country about an hour and a half from the city. Kurt's wide eyes took in the stucco walls and wraparound porch. "This place is beautiful" he whispered, intertwining his fingers with Blaine's.

"Not as beautiful as you" Blaine whispered, smiling that crooked smile of his.

"Blaine" Kurt groaned, "come on, don't get all mushy on me now or I might give you this ring back."

Blaine faked a look of indignation, releasing Kurt's hand to press his own to his chest. "You wouldn't!"

Kurt shook his head at his boyfriend, no fiancé, as they parked the car behind a few others in the driveway.

Blaine opened the door for Kurt, taking his hand and leading him up to the front door. They waited momentarily as Alyssa, dressed in a red cocktail dress, opened the door, smiling widely. "Come on in boys, we're just getting started!" She stole a quick glance at Blaine who tilted his head slightly then quickly lead them into a large living room.

"CONGRATULATIONS!" thundered from the mouths of everyone there, from Finn and Kurt's parents to most of the Warblers. Kurt stood there in shock as he took in all the faces, along with the large banner reading 'Congrats on Your Engagement!' Kurt turned to Blaine, slightly embarrassed. "So this is what the party is really for?"

"Yeah," Blaine grinned. "Now do you see why I had to be so secretive about  _everything_? I was so scared I was going to slip up."

"I feel like I should be really mad at you, but I can't." Kurt grinned as Mercedes, Rachel and Brittany stepped up, hugging him in turn.

"Finally!" a voice from over Kurt's right shoulder exclaimed before he was pulled into a bone-crushing hug. "Thought you two would never see this day!" Kurt rolled his eyes at Nick who was still hugging his waist, squeezing the air out of him.

"Nick, you speak the truth! I swear, if Kurt hadn't had said yes…"

"We'd never hear the end of it." Nick echoed with Jeff, both of them now latched onto Kurt.

"Ok, ok enough! I said yes, you can let me go now."

"Can't! This is the last time we'll get to hug you as a free man!" Nick said, eyes going wide as if he thought marriage were a curse.

"Yeah!" Jeff exclaimed. "Next time we see you they'll be shackling you to Blaine!"

"Hey, maybe Kurt likes being handcuffed" Nick suggested, poking Jeff in the ribs.

"Ok, that is  _enough_ " Kurt said, wrenching himself from the grasp of the two boys.

"I'll take that as a yes." Kurt jumped as a low voice spoke in his ear and he turned his head slightly to see Blaine standing there, a wicked grin on his face.

"You are  _not_ helping."

* * *

The party was in full swing when Kurt was crushed in what seemed like the hundredth hug of the day. What he didn't expect were the words he heard next. "Congratulations son, we're really proud of you."

Kurt spun around and came face to face with Burt, his eyes shining with unshed tears. "Dad! What are you doing here?"

Burt moved to the side and Carole slipped around him, hugging Kurt also. "Mercedes called us. Kurt, we're so happy for you."

"Yeah bro, I mean, you deserve it." Kurt was surprised to find out that he had missed Finn slip in and hugged his brother as well.

"You mean to tell me, you knew all along about this?"

Finn blanched a little under Kurt's withering stare but managed to say "yeah, it was important. That's also why I always had to cut our phone conversations short, I was so nervous I'd say something and screw it all up."

Kurt was stopped from giving his family the third degree when Blaine stepped up behind him, placing a hand on Kurt's arm. "Mr. and Mrs. Hummel, Finn, I'm glad to see you could make it."

"We wouldn't miss it for the world Blaine" Carole said, hugging the brown haired boy.

* * *

Mercedes, Kurt, Rachel, Blaine and Finn sat around on the couch discussing wedding dates. "November! I'm telling you, fall colors are better!" Mercedes exclaimed, pointing a finger at Kurt.

"But it's easier for everybody in the summer, I'm on break then" Finn whined, pouting his bottom lip out slightly.

"Hey guys" Blaine said, trying to catch everyone's attention. "Guys. GUYS!" he finally yelled, effectively shutting everyone up. "Why don't we let Kurt decide? He's the wedding planner extraordinaire. I've seen pictures from Burt and Carole's wedding, I'm sure he'll do wonderful at ours."

Kurt's heart clenched in the best way possible just thinking about the fact that he and Blaine were getting married.

"Yeah! The wedding and reception was amazing-looking Kurt!"

"Well thanks Finn" Kurt grinned, the compliment warming him.

"I'm sure Kurt will do a great job, but I'm going to step back and let him do it, Kurt and party planning are two things you never wanna get between." Blaine laughed when Kurt playfully hit him on the arm, replying by squeezing the arm thrown around Kurt's shoulders a bit tighter.

"Well," Kurt said quietly, looking at the faces around him, "I've always dreamed of a fall wedding, the colors silver and navy have always stuck with me."

Mercedes clapped her hands excitedly. "Yes! Fall wedding, I was right."

"Kurt, Kurt you  _have_ to let me and Mercedes go shopping with you!" Rachel exclaimed, her eyes lighting up at the thought.

Kurt rolled his eyes and gave a small laugh at Rachel's antics. "Well since Mercedes is going to be the maid of honor-"

"Wait, you're going to have one of those? But you're both dudes" Finn interrupted, looking confusedly at Kurt.

"Yes, Finn, and we're going to have bridesmaids. I have too many friends that are female not to."

Blaine gave a small chuckle as Finn tried to figure out how it was going to work. "Just think of Kurt as the bride" he joked.

Finn let out a small 'oh' as Kurt jabbed Blaine in the ribs, glaring at him angrily.

Blaine put up a hand in mock surrender as Mercedes and Rachel broke out laughing. "Oh my god Blaine, you're so gonna get it when you get home!" Rachel laughed.

"I hope so" Blaine grinned, winking at the girl sitting across from him.

"Oh. My. God. Blaine, that is my brother ok, I don't wanna and plus Carole and Burt are staying at your house and-"

"Finn, calm down, I was joking!" Blaine was trying hard not to laugh because Kurt was giving him the scariest stare he'd seen in a while and he didn't want to get hurt tonight.

* * *

Kurt, Blaine, Carole and Burt were seated around the kitchen table, sipping coffee and tea and discussing the wedding. "October and November are the best months for fall weddings, still not too cold outside, less chance of bad weather, especially snow or ice."

Burt would be the one that would think of things technically, Kurt smiled to himself before bristling.

Blaine glanced over at Kurt when he felt him stiffen against his arm. He snuck a glance over to see that Kurt's ears were turning red and his breathing was shallow. Blaine squeezed Kurt's hand and looked at him questioningly. Kurt shook his head slightly and mouthed the word 'later' before calming himself down and immersing himself back into the conversation.

"I was thinking about October 25th, it's a Saturday. I figured that would give everyone time to ask off of work and get reservations and so on."

"Well, if you need anything, just let us know, I'll come out if you need shopping help!" Carole smiled at Kurt, hoping she would be able to bond some with her son-in-law.

"I will mom!"

* * *

Blaine was lying in bed, glasses on and book in hand when Kurt slipped between the sheets next to him. "So what was your breakdown tonight when your parents were in the kitchen?" Blaine asked, setting the book on the night table.

"Oh god" Kurt groaned, flushing and rubbing a hand across his face. "We were sitting there and I realized dad was sitting in  _that_ chair."

"What chair?"

"Come on Blaine, you know,  _that_ chair. The one that I told you I'd never forget."

"You mean the one where we did dirty things at breakfast?"

"Yes Blaine, that chair. And we let dad sit in it!"

"Kurt, he was none the wiser. It's ok."

Kurt groaned and hid his head in Blaine's shoulder. "I'm scarred for life. Scarred I tell you!"

Blaine simply shook his head and pulled the covers over them, pressing a soft kiss to Kurt's forehead. "It'll be ok babe, they'll never know.


	18. Wedding Planning

Blaine stood in the doorway of the bedroom, watching Kurt flick through one wedding magazine after the other. He smiled slightly at the color coded tabs sticking out of them, once again thankful that Kurt had not asked him to help, he would have been close to useless. Instead, Blaine spent time keeping a watchful eye on gossip columns and tabloids, wondering how long it would be before some nosy reporter caught wind of their engagement.

"Blaine? Are you ok?" Kurt's words caught Blaine by surprise, causing him to jump a bit.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Er, actually I wanted to ask you something."

"What is it?" Kurt asked, not looking up from his task at hand.

"Well, you see, I was wondering, hoping actually, that you would let me maybe, plan the reception."

Kurt shot an eyebrow at his fiancé, the out of the blue request throwing him off a bit.

"Not like the cake or food or anything, just like the music and decorations." Blaine added quickly, assuring Kurt that he would still get a say in how the night went.

Kurt smiled up at Blaine, amusement in his eyes. "Well, as long as I still get to choose the cake then, why not? You cannot do anything cheesy or Disney for our first dance or anything ok?" Kurt pointed an accusing finger at Blaine, wondering if 'A Whole New World' had been at the top of Blaine's list.

"Don't worry" Blaine reassured Kurt. "I already have the first dance song picked out and I swear a Scout's Honor it isn't Disney!"

"Were you ever actually a Boy Scout?"

"Yes, but I quit when I realized that it was only because my father thought me being in the wilderness with boys my age would straighten me out."

"So you really do know the scout's pledge?" Kurt asked, trying to pull the conversation away from Blaine's dad and the hell he had given him.

"On my honor, I will do my best to do my duty to God and my Country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight."

Kurt laughed as Blaine gave a mock salute after finishing the recitation. "You're too adorable for your own good" he laughed as Blaine set on the edge of the bed.

"That's my line" Blaine laughed, leaning forward to press a soft kiss to the tip of Kurt's nose. "Also, I'll take it that's a yes?"

Kurt rolled his eyes at Blaine but told him yes, he could plan the reception but there would be hell to pay if it were atrocious.

* * *

"Kurt what about this one?" Rachel asked, holding up a navy dress to her small frame. "It reminds me of those gold dresses we wore for our first Regionals."

Kurt looked at the dress in question and realized that it did remind him of those costumes. "I don't know Rachel, it just doesn't feel right, but put it on the 'let's think about it rack'."

"You know" Mercedes piped up, "I actually like Rachel's choice, that style looks good on everyone."

"Yeah" Rachel grinned, "you wouldn't want one of your five hundred unnecessary bridesmaids to look bad."

"Hey, if you don't want to be an  _unnecessary_ bridesmaid then feel free to walk on out of here!" Kurt put on a hurt face, joking with the brunette.

"Oh please, you know I'd never leave a chance to be in the spotlight!"

Kurt rolled his eyes but held his tongue as the remark about how it was  _his_ wedding came into his mind.

Kurt looked at the dress once more, realizing that he may never hear the end of it if he didn't let the girls have some say in what they would be wearing. He turned to the lady who had been assisting them in the small boutique "Marissa, can we add silver bows around the waist to these?"

The lady nodded, "sure Mr. Hummel, I think we can arrange that for you sir."

Kurt watched as the woman walked off to go find a pricing chart. He had chosen this boutique for the simple reason that though they apparently knew who he was, he was still out of the public eye for a bit. Of course, when he had to start ordering floral arrangements and the cake and all other sorts of those things word would get around, but for now he figured he was safe.

"It's an extra forty dollars for the bow and sash to be added Mr. Hummel." Marissa had returned and was looking at Kurt expectantly.

He pretended to be thinking hard about the decision before he let out a small sigh. "That's fine Marissa, go ahead and take the measurements for these two" he gestured towards Rachel and Mercedes. "I'll send the rest of the girls here as soon as possible."

Mercedes and Rachel high-fived each other as they followed Marissa into the back to be fitted. Kurt sat in one of the plush white chairs that dotted the room and pulled out his to-do list. He scratched off 'find bridesmaid dress' and wrote 'call the girls with directions to get fitted' underneath. The list was still quite long and Kurt was dreading the insane amount of phone calls he would have to make soon.

He looked up and slid his list back into his pocket as Mercedes and Rachel came walking back out. Kurt stood from the chair and thanked Marissa for her help. "Also, can I procure a scrap of this color so that I can match the tuxes?"

"Sure, let me go find the Royal Navy squares and I'll be right back."

Marissa returned with the material and handed it to Kurt. "Will that be all for you Mr. Hummel?"

"Yes, once again, thank you for your help."

"My pleasure sir. If I may, could I inquire about your bride? Normally she is the one to pick all of these items out."

"My fiancé has asked me to make the arrangements, I'm better with the accessorizing apparently."

Mercedes and Rachel tried to suppress their giggles as they turned to exit the boutique, Kurt in tow, grinning as soon as Marissa had turned around.

As soon as the trio was outside all three broke into a fit of laughter. "I'm better with the accessorizing" Rachel snorted. "Did she really not get that you're gay or?"

"Apparently, I mean, we were looking at  _bridesmaid_ dresses. Though, if she knew me"

"She wouldn't be surprised" Mercedes finished, grinning and taking Kurt's arm in her own. "Come along Mr. Hummel, we need to get you home to your blushing bride before she thinks you've eloped to Vegas with another woman."

Mercedes' comment caused Rachel to clutch her midsection as she doubled over in laughter once again.

* * *

Kurt walked through the apartment door after having dropped Rachel at her apartment and Mercedes at her hotel. Kurt had been surprised when Mercedes had phoned him, telling him that she was done with her show for a while and had turned down all offers in order to help him prepare for the wedding. Kurt appreciated her for that; she was the one who he had spilled his deepest wedding wishes to when they had their lady chats at McKinley.

Blaine held up a hand as Kurt walked in, motioning to the phone cradled against his ear. "Uh huh, yeah, correct, uh huh, five dozen, right, twenty, uh huh, yes, thanks." He turned around on the stool he was seated on, smiling.

"What was that about?" Kurt asked, eyebrow raised.

"You'll see" Blaine grinned, grabbing Kurt's hands and tugging the taller boy towards him. "How was shopping with the girls?"

"Amusing. The lady at the boutique wanted to know why my 'fiancée' wasn't picking out her bridesmaid dresses. I told her that I was better at accessorizing."

"You would. God, I love you." Blaine pressed a soft kiss to Kurt's lips and broke away smiling. "Wanna order out tonight? I'm sure you're tired and don't want to cook."

"Sounds great, Chinese? I know you love the sweet and sour chicken from the little place around the corner."

"Mhmm" Blaine mumbled, stretching and settling down onto the couch with whatever book he was reading that day.

* * *

Kurt poured a cup of coffee and absentmindedly buttered a slice of toast as he flipped through the morning paper. He scanned across the headlines, an eight car pile-up on the freeway, the stock market speculations and so on until a headline caught his eye. " _Broadway star tying the knot?"_  He set his cup on the counter as he read through the short article.

_Kurt Hummel, leading male of the Broadway show, Phantom of the Opera was seen exiting a small boutique in Lower Manhattan yesterday. He had two girls in tow, Mercedes Jones, Vegas star and Rachel Berry, Broadway actress. The owner of the boutique was unable to answer most of our questions, only knowing that Mr. Hummel had secured bridesmaids dresses for ten women. No news has been received of who the lucky woman is to capture the attentions of Hummel._

Kurt closed the paper angrily. He knew he would eventually have to see these stories, but he didn't think it would be so soon. Blaine was going to be seen out and about, shopping for reception supplies and so on. How long would it take for the paparazzi to figure out they were marrying each other? Another more sinister question began to slowly take form in Kurt's mind, when the public did find out, what would that do for  _Phantom_?

"Babe are you ok?" Blaine yawned from the doorway.

"No. I am completely disgusted by the lack of privacy anyone has anymore." He thrust the paper at Blaine, pointing to the article.

Blaine skimmed over the words, his brow furrowing slightly.

"Kurt, don't let this get to you. If this is their big news then they're obviously hard up for stories. No matter what the paper says, we're going to have an amazing wedding, ok?" Blaine kissed Kurt slowly, wishing he could kiss all of Kurt's anger and stress away.

"Don't they have anything better to do with their time instead of bothering the public with nonsense like who I'm marrying?"

"It's the price of fame. We get our privacy taken away so we can do what we love. It sucks, I know, but it's life."

Kurt rested his head upon Blaine's shoulder for a moment before asking softly, "when they find out about us, what do you think it's going to do to  _Phantom_?"

"Absolutely nothing. If anyone protests against the show for our marriage after the show has ran this long then no one will pay attention." Blaine wrapped an arm around Kurt's waist, stroking his lower back soothingly. "Plus, it isn't like we're the first gay actors to appear in a Broadway show."

"I know. You know how I get sometimes. Thanks Blaine."

"For what?"

"For always being there when I need you."

"I'll always be here, forever."

* * *

"No sir, we don't have a color called Royal Navy but if I could attract your attention to this swath we do have a color that matches the one in your hand. This one is called Midnight Skyline."

Kurt stared at the two swatches of cloth, comparing them side-by-side. They looked the exact same, but he had to be sure. Holding them up to the light he turned to Alyssa and Mercedes. "Do these look the same to you?"

"Yes Kurt" they droned, tired of looking at swatches. "I can't see any difference this time, I promise" Mercedes added, holding her hand over her heart.

Kurt examined the two pieces of cloth before handing the Midnight Skyline back to the salesman. "That's perfect. I need ten of the style 2452 suits with matching Midnight Skyline cummerbunds and ties. I also will need two of the style 6419 suits, both with Sterling cummerbunds but one with a tie and one with a bowtie. The bowtie will go with my suit, which I can be fitted for today correct?"

"Yes Mr. Hummel." The salesman gave a weary smile, tallying the price of the suits. "When will they need to be ready?"

"Can I get them ready for pick-up October 18th? That's two days before the wedding. The men will be here for fittings sometime between tomorrow and September 8th."

"That's fine sir. Just tell them to let whoever is working that they are here for the Hummel wedding party."

"Thank you."

The salesman led Kurt back to the tailor shop for measurements.

"What do you think is going to happen when Blaine comes in for the other silver suit?"

Mercedes looked nervously at Alyssa before answering. "You know, though I'm a little worried about it, I'd be surprised if they could put two and two together."

"So true. They probably won't figure it out until the two are exchanging their vows."

"Figure out what?" came Kurt's voice from behind them.

"Oh nothing" Alyssa answered innocently, batting her eyelashes at him. "Just that you'll be so handsome at your wedding."

* * *

Blaine stood in the middle of the florist shop, wanting nothing more to pull out his hair. He stared at what seemed to be a hundred different flowers. There were roses, daisies, chrysanthemums and lilies lying on the counter in varying shades of crème and white. Blaine picked up one after the other, trying to figure out what exactly, was the difference between Cotton Field and Cloud Nine white.  _Who exactly named these colors anyway_ , he wondered,  _they're so cliché_.

He was sure that Kurt probably could have pointed out ten differences in the two colors, but Blaine was on his own on this one. He had discarded the lilies and daisies finally settling on a small rose that was apparently colored Purity.  _Give that guy a fucking medal for simplicity_ Blaine chuckled to himself.

He motioned to the florist that he had made a decision finally and added the rose to the small pile of flowers on the left side of the mahogany counter. "I think this is the last of the flowers that I need Jameson."

"Well Mr. Anderson, if that's all I just need to know how many of each you need and will you need bouquets?"

Blaine blanched for a second before regaining his composure and launched into his prepared speech. "No, my fiancé will contact you about the bouquets for the bridesmaids and so on, I'm just taking care of the flowers for the reception."

"Very well then, what do you need?"

Blaine placed his order with Jameson, smiling as he explained how each flower was going to be used in the displays.

"Will that be all for you Mr. Anderson?"

"Well, I was wondering if you dealt with trees at all."

"Trees?"

"Yeah, like small decorative ones."

"No sir, we don't, but I can give you the number to a small garden shop that will have what you're looking for."

"Thank you, I really appreciate it."

* * *

Blaine flopped onto the couch after he entered the apartment. "I hate this."

"What's wrong?" Kurt asked, sitting next to Blaine on the edge of the couch.

"Do you have any idea how many different versions of white there is in the world?"

"Probably just as many as they have of navy. I had to go to three different tux shops in order to match the blue of my tuxes to those of the dresses."

"I don't know how you do it."

"Years of practice babe. I made lasagna for dinner though; it's warming in the oven."

"You're a godsend, you really are."

* * *

"Ok, look, I need at least two vegan plates, how hard is that to understand?" Kurt was getting angry with the caterer now who was refusing to allow him this one concession.

"Sir, we can only prepare ten at the least."

"You can't prepare two plates? Wouldn't it be more cost efficient for you to make just the two?'

"Whether it is or not isn't up to me sir, I just know that the smallest amount of certain plates we can fix are ten."

"Fine then" Kurt said exasperatedly, resting his head on the kitchen table, his phone on speaker next to him. "I'll need twenty-five of the chicken plates and ten vegan ones then."

"What was the date for this and also, the wedding party name?"

"October 19th and the name is Hummel."

"As in Kurt Hummel?"

"Yes" Kurt sighed, rolling his eyes at the phone.

"Well Mr. Hummel, we appreciate you using Gregory and Son's Catering Services for your wedding, we will be in contact if any problem arises and if you need anything please do not hesitate to call."

"Thank you Fred."

Kurt hung up the phone and rested his head on his arms. Wedding planning was tiring, that musch he had found out. He found his resolve once again and picked up the phone to call another catering service that specialized in buffets.

* * *

Blaine looked from on tree to another in the small garden shop. "Which one would you recommend Paul? I'm stuck between the Miniature Cherry and the Dogwood."

The attendant looked for a moment between the two trees before speaking. "The Minature Cherry is used more as an ornamental tree, but the Dogwood is a bit stronger, the brances are less likely to break with any added weight."

Blaine thought for a moment, his eyes taking first on tree then the other. "Paul, would it be possible for me to order twelve of the Dogwoods and have them arrive before October 19th?"

"Yes sir, we can arrange that, it's still a few months away."

"Do you by chance deliver ?"

"For you sir, I believe we could."

"Well then, I will call you with the address as soon as I finalize the place."

"Yes sir, you said twelve Dogwoods correct?"

* * *

Blaine woke before Kurt for once which was in itself a miracle. He rolled out of bed and padded softly into the kitchen, turning on the coffee pot and was greeted by the soft mewling of Snoball. "Hey there buddy" he smiled, picking up the kitten and scratching it behind the ears. Snoball let out a soft purring before settling into Blaine's chest.

Blaine carried the cat with him as he walked to the front door and picked up the paper that was resting on the doormat.

He set the kitten on the floor and poured it a bowl of milk after he added a bit to the coffee he had poured for himself. He sat on a barstool at the counter, crossing a foot over the other as he opened the paper.

The paper had yet to say anything about him out planning for a wedding but as today paper showed, the time of peace was over. A small article was buried between other events in the entertainment section.

_Another leading Phantom member tying the knot._

_Sources tell us that Blaine Anderson was seen leaving Antonio's Flower Shoppe Tuesday afternoon. According to the florist Mr. Anderson was purchasing flowers for his wedding reception. He bought a batch of white roses and inquired about some trees. Is Anderson trying to take the spotlight from Kurt Hummel who was also seen making dress and tux purchases for his own wedding? Or, is there something else at play here, something no one else has thought of yet?_

Blaine snorted and threw the paper away, not caring if Kurt had wanted to see it or not. Blaine was tired of the insinuations already. If he and Kurt had wanted everyone to know they were getting married they would have told them. He was surprised that the media hadn't figured out they were dating yet, instead believing them close friends and roommates.

"What's wrong babe?" Kurt yawned at Blaine from the doorway, his blue eyes shining sleepily.

"Nothing" Blaine murmured, "just the media."

Kurt crossed the room and slid his arms around Blaine's waist. "Another article? What was it this time?"

"Oh, they finally figured out why I was at the florists a few days ago. Now they're trying to figure out if I'm trying to steal your spotlight or if we're fucking each other."

"Damn it, I'm sick of this. I know we signed up for it being on Broadway, but we can't even plan our wedding without them sticking their nose into it."

Blaine nuzzled back into Kurt's embrace, the warmth of Kurt's body soothing him. "We're going to get through this, we've been through worse. We've got this."

Kurt smiled in spite of everything else. "We have each other and that's enough for me."

* * *

Kurt checked his list over once more. The invitations had been sent, the cake ordered and everyone had either come in for a fitting or had a tailor fax over their dimensions. He had set up the buffet for the reception, though he had had to give Blaine the number so he could tell them where to set up. They had been very careful about how that conversation went so that more rumors wouldn't be spread. Blaine had simply pretended to be 'Mr. Hummel's assistant.'

The hard thing had been when Blaine had been fitted for his tux. The tailor had come to his own conclusion that Blaine must be the best man and proceeded to try and drag answers about the 'lucky woman' Kurt was marrying. Blaine had found himself so incensed with the man that he longed to grab the man by the shoulders, give him a good shake and yell 'he likes men you idiot!' Instead he gritted his teeth and insisted that as one of Kurt's closest companions he couldn't give the man any more information.

The invitations were the hardest part of all though. Ordering items that actually held the words Kurt, Blaine and wedding all together were bound to set someone talking. Kurt had chosen the lady who worked out of her home in hopes of finding someone who didn't know who they were. Unfortunately, as soon as Kurt told her his name she told him how much she loved him in Phantom. In the end he offered her twice the given price in order for her secrecy. Kurt was slightly worried that she might refuse when she found out he was marrying Blaine, but she surprised him in wishing them the very best and promising to attend any other shows they were in.

Kurt had secured a small chapel that would hold the few people that would attend. He had invited all of his friends from New Directions, the Warblers, family members, people he knew on Broadway and Blaine's mother. Blaine didn't know Kurt had invited her, nor had he asked. Carole and Burt were coming a week early to help decorate and get everything together since Kurt and Blaine still had to perform in  _Phantom_ until the end of September. Mercedes was going back to Vegas in the middle of September for a week in order to negotiate her contract with the MGM Grand but would be back in time to help Kurt and Blaine with everything.

Kurt kicked his feet up onto the couch, going over his list a final time. Cake? Check. Flowers? Check. A final scan showed that he had done everything, called everyone and ordered everything. A quick peek into the kitchen told him that Blaine was still working on his list. Kurt watched as Blaine threw his hands around animatedly, apparently upset with the person on the other end of the phone. Kurt watched him for a moment before opening the day's paper. He gasped out loud as he opened to the second page where a picture of him and Blaine entering their apartment together greeted him.  _Stars In Love_ was the headline and Kurt cringed as he read on.

 _Kurt Hummel and Blaine Anderson, both actors in the Broadway play_ Phantom of the Opera _were seen entering their shared apartment late last night. Rumors have been circulating for a while about their secret marriages that no one seems privy to but the men. The reason for this is obvious once you hear it, they're marrying_ each other _. Anderson was seen coming out of the tailor shop where Hummel placed the order for his tuxes. The tailor seemed to think that Anderson was Hummel's best man, but was put off slightly by the fact that Hummel and Anderson were wearing matching suit colors. So there it is, two of the most eligible bachelors in New York City are being taken off the market by each other._

Kurt rolled his eyes, the article not bothering him as much as the first few did. It was just a newspaper, he had his friends and family and Blaine and that's all that mattered in the end.


	19. Wedding Bells

"Kurt Hummel you are not nervous!"

"Shut up guys, it's my wedding I'm allowed to be nervous!"

"It's not like your groom is going to get cold feet and run away." Rachel rolled her eyes from the corner as she tucked a curl behind her ear.

Kurt shook his head at her, only Rachel could say things like that and get away with it. He adjusted his bowtie once more, looking at his reflection in the mirror.

He smiled as a flash of navy caught his eye and he saw Brittany twirling around in her dress. Why was he nervous? He was  _essentially_ marrying his high school sweetheart and nothing could really go wrong. Blaine wasn't going to leave him at the altar that much he could be sure of.

* * *

Kurt heard the opening strains of the processional, 'Ode to Joy' as he had chosen begin, and the girls began to walk down the aisle. He felt a hand close over his and the scent of Blaine's cologne wafted towards him. "You look stunning" Blaine whispered in his ear and Kurt felt a small chill of excitement run down his spine. In a few moments time they would be standing there, pronounced husband and husband and he would be forever Blaine's and Blaine would be his. The Hummel-Andersons. Kurt had practiced saying that to people when Blaine wasn't around.  _Hello, you've reached the Hummel-Anderson residence, we can't come to the phone right now but if you leave a message we'll get back to you as soon as possible._ The thought made Kurt beam, he hadn't been this happy in a long time.

'Canon in D' began playing as Kurt and Blaine moved forward, clutching on to the other's hand. Carole and Burt sat in the front row along with Blaine's mother and a few of the Warblers. There were people from each of the groom's extended families along with other friends and somehow a press person or two. Kurt rolled his eyes but continued on, the publicity of their marriage was now old news.

Kurt and Blaine stood together in the front of the small chapel, expertly decorated by Kurt himself. Beaming friends stood on either side of them and in the seats. Kurt couldn't help but keep his eyes on Blaine, the most perfect man in the world.

Kurt felt a tear run down his cheek as the vows were said. He was surrounded by people who loved him and he was marrying the man he loved. He watched in awe as Blaine slid the silver hand onto his ring finger. Shaking, he slid a matching band onto Blaine's tan finger, completing their vows. They kissed to cheering and catcalling, the later mostly thanks to the Warblers in attendance.

* * *

Kurt and Blaine walked out of the chapel hand in hand, now two-in-one, the newly wedded Hummel-Andersons. Smiling guests stood in two lines and threw birdseed laced with glitter over the heads of the grooms.

Kurt stopped short as they reached the curb. There, waiting for them in the street was a horse-drawn carriage. Kurt felt a tear roll down his cheek as he clenched tighter to Blaine's hand. "You did this?" he whispered, looking down at Blaine. Blaine simply smiled and opened the carriage door, holding out a hand to help Kurt up.

After they were seated on the red plush bench Rachel yelled for them to smile as she began taking a multitude of pictures of the boys in the white carriage with a 'Just Married' banner hung on the back. The entire carriage was decorated. The black wooden wheels had silver roses attached to the middle and each of the white horses had navy ribbons braided into their manes.

"Well sirs, are we ready?" the driver asked with a tip of his hat.

Blaine nodded a yes as the driver grabbed the reins and started them forwards. Blaine slid an arm around Kurt as the sounds of the city were softened by the sound of hooves on the road and the creaking of the turning wheels.

Kurt leaned into Blaine and let out a contented sigh as he stared up at the stars above them. "This is perfect Blaine" he said quietly, twining his fingers into Blaine's.

The wedded couple stood in front of the Plaza Hotel, Kurt's mouth gaping open. "Blaine, you didn't."

Instead of replying, Blaine merely grasped Kurt's hand and led him through the doors.

"But" Kurt sputtered "it's near impossible to get a room for a reception here!"

"I wanted you to have everything you dreamed of. I happen to know you've wanted a reception here since you were five."

"How did you know that?"

"Mercedes. She happily revealed any and all secrets of yours pertaining your childhood wedding dreams for the occasion."

Kurt's eyes widened as he realized what Blaine had just said. "I could kill you both."

* * *

Kurt and Blaine walked into the reception hall and Kurt let out a small gasp as he took in the decorations. Tables around the room were covered in navy tablecloths with pale green vases holding white roses and crème colored lilies. In the center of the room was a simple white gazebo where the cake Kurt had ordered sat. Making a small path to the gazebo itself were two lines of trees covered in white twinkling lights that matched those that lit the gazebo.

Blaine led Kurt to a long table in the front where their closest friends and family sat, taking the center seats. Kurt leaned into Blaine as the sound of metal hitting glass was heard across the room.

Wes, Blaine's best man, stood as he cleared his throat loudly. "Friends and family of the grooms, welcome. Blaine requested that I be his best man, much to the dismay of many of the Warblers in the room. They, of course, are under the impression that I am prepared to make a long winded speech about the sacredness of marriage and the importance of fidelity. But alas, I am not. In fact, I am going to tell a story. A story about a boy who came to us broken and bruised and the angel that saved him from himself.

Blaine showed up on the steps of Dalton one chilly September morning, lost and scared. He had been dumped at our door by his parents, sporting a black eye with a shoulder bag, suitcase and guitar to his name."

Kurt glanced over at Blaine, reaching for his hand for support.

"He quickly became the favorite of the Warblers, we all felt like he was our little brother, someone we would protect no matter what. Soon enough he regained his strength and showed us what he really had inside, soaring to lead soloist of our little group. He was still missing something though; something neither the Warblers nor Dalton could give him.

Then it happened. One day Blaine met a boy very much like him on the stairs of our school. This boy immediately grabbed Blaine's attention, trust me, he reenacted their meeting over a thousand times."

Kurt stole a quick glance at Blaine whose cheeks were heating up.

"Then Kurt told Blaine his story and Blaine assumed the role of Kurt's protector. Most of us know this story, how Blaine confronted Kurt's fears in an attempt to conquer his own. But let me in on a few secrets. First, Kurt I want to tell you, that horribly gone wrong GAP Attack? None of us saw it coming. We all swore up and down that Blaine had  _finally_ realized his feelings for you. So when we found out about Jeremiah, we wanted to hang him by his toenails from the school flagpole.

"Finally,  _finally_  Blaine the dense, as we dubbed him at secret Warbler meetings held for the sole purpose of trying to get you two together, figured it all out. And yes, that time Nick and Jeff told you about the emergency rehearsal, you were supposed to find and empty room and use it for god's sake! We threw ourselves a congratulatory party the night before Regionals while you two were off making out or whatever it was after you two got together."

It was Kurt's turn to squirm as he felt his father look at him from down the table. He had 'forgotten' to mention  _any and all_ physical aspects of his and Blaine's relationship to his father.

Blaine was wondering whether Burt had a shotgun hidden under the table. He looked at Wes with widened eyes, begging him to keep his mouth shut.

"Of course, then came Winter Formal and  _everyone_ had to pay up to me because I mean hey, we all know what happens at Winter Formal."

That was it, Blaine felt all the blood drain out of his face and slumped onto the table, head buried in his arms.

Kurt would have been shocked and terrified if not for two reasons. One, he figured Wes was going to do his best to embarrass them, he  _was_ a Warbler after all and two, Burt was looking at Nick dangerously because hey, Nick was supposed to keep an eye on Kurt and Blaine that night.

"As long as we skip the awful fight that everyone knows about and push forward then we end up here, guests at the wonderful Hummel-Anderson wedding. I have seen the process of these two men on their path together, and to allow me a moment to be mushy, I know they're meant to be here, to share forever, together."

Wes set down to thunderous applause from the Warblers and members of New Directions, a dangerous look from Blaine and a few raised eyebrows from other adults in attendance.

The scraping of a chair was heard as Finn stood to his feet. He cleared his throat nervously before beginning. "Family and friends gathered here today, I want to thank you all for attending. Most of what I was going to say has been said, but as requested by a few of the boys in blue-" Raucous yelling emanated from the tables holding the Warblers. "-I am going to tell you a bit of the same story with a different spin on it.

"We all know about Kurt being bullied, about how McKinley, including me personally, either bullied him or watched as others wronged him. We all know about the events that led up to Kurt's transfer to Dalton. But the one thing that a lot of people didn't notice right away was how drastically Kurt changed. Not in a bad way, but in a very good way. He was a lot happier than I had ever seen him. Right away I knew Dalton was good for him.

"Of course, I heard second hand all of the stories about Blaine, sometimes I'd get texts from Kurt about him, but I think Kurt was smart enough to realize I wasn't good with relationship advice. What I was good at though was noticing how happy Kurt was when Blaine finally figured it all out and they started dating. If I had thought Kurt was happy performing in Glee it was nothing compared to how happy he was when he was with Blaine. Of course, as Kurt's big brother, it was up to me to keep an eye on them and even though it seemed like I was being unfair, hey, I had to protect him right?"

Kurt thought about the bazillion and one times Finn had interrupted one of his and Blaine's make out sessions in order to ask a question about this or that. Finn had just thought he was being a good big brother.

"So of course, I'm really proud to be standing here telling all of you this, because I'm really proud of both of them. If they aren't proof that there are people out in the world that are meant for each other than I don't know if it's possible. They put behind him one of the worse things to happen and they realized that they couldn't live without each other, that their love truly could conquer all."

Finn sat with a small tear forming in the corner of his eye. In fact, Kurt noticed as he glanced around the room, there was barely a dry eye in the room; even his father's eyes were a bit misty.

Mercedes cleared her throat as she stood, holding up a glass of champagne. "As the maid of honor Kurt asked me to give a speech, but I believe everything that needs to be said has, so I'd like to give a short toast to the happy couple before they do their first dance.

"To Kurt and Blaine Hummel-Anderson, may all your years be filled with love and happiness; you two are too perfect together for anything less. Don't forget your friends when you make it big. Oh, and have lots of fun on your honeymoon darlings!"

Mercedes toasted the couple amidst laughing and clapping before everyone picked up their glasses and drank to the happy couple.

* * *

Blaine led Kurt to the dance floor, unable to keep his eyes off his new husband. He was slightly nervous, hoping that Kurt would like the song he chose for their first dance. The lights danced across Kurt's features, making him so beautiful, not that he wasn't usually, but so much more so now.

Kurt looked at Blaine, noticing the way the lights reflected in his hazel eyes, sparkling with love and a hint of nervousness. He grabbed Blaine's hand as they reached the center of the dance floor, everyone surrounding them on the edge. He watched as the Warblers, who had shed their tux jackets for the old familiar Dalton ones, lined up. Jeff stepped to the front of the group. "When Blaine called an impromptu emergency meeting of the Warblers, we were intrigued to hear the song he had for the first dance. As we were practicing though, we realized how perfect this song was for them. If you had been a Warbler, or Finn in this case, you'd know this."

With that the Warblers minus Jeff started out with soft bum bum bum bums. Jeff soon added his voice to the group. " _There I was again tonight, forcing laughter, faking smiles. Same old tired lonely place. Walls of insincerity, shifting eyes and vacancy vanished when I saw your face. All I can say is it was enchanting to meet you_."

"Taylor Swift?" Kurt questioned, a soft smile forming on his face.

"It's so us though. You took me by surprise. When I turned around to you on the staircase you took my breath away Kurt."

Nick continued on in the background as the two boys danced slowly on together. " _Your eyes whispered 'have we met', 'cross the room your silhouette starts to make its way to me. The playful conversation starts, counter all your quick remarks, like passing notes in secrecy. And it was enchanting to meet you. All I can say is I was enchanted to meet you. This night is sparkling, don't you let it go, I'm wonderstruck, blushing' all the way home. I spent forever wondering' if you knew I was enchanted to meet you_."

"It's true." Blaine whispered, his eyes locked onto Kurt's. "I couldn't stop thinking about you that night. I thought about everything you had told me that day, but most of all your face kept haunting me in the dark. I was so scared that I'd never see you again."

"I told Carole all about you when I got home you know. I just sat there and cried in her arms. For once in my life I felt like I wasn't alone in the world, I felt like everything was going to be ok."

The song continued on in the background. " _The lingering question kept me up; two AM who do you love? I wonder 'til I'm wide awake. Now I'm pacing back and forth, wishing you were at my door. I'd open it and you would say, hey, it was enchanting to meet you. I was enchanted to meet you. This night is sparkling don't you let it go. I'm wonderstruck blushing all the way home. I spent forever wondering if you knew._ "

Blaine looked up at Kurt who was trying not to cry. "I wondered how you felt about me. Although I did some stupid, stupid things I wanted you to like me more than I have ever wanted anything in the world. I was so scared of hurting you though, so in my attempt to remain your knight in shining armor, I ended up doing the one thing I was trying to keep myself from doing. I'm so  _so_  sorry Kurt. I wish, I wish I could go back, erase the stupid thing with Jeremiah and my drunken kiss with Rachel. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize the only thing missing in my life was you."

"I literally spent hours awake that night, trying to figure out if you had someone or not. I tried to tell myself that my feelings for you were simply from the fact that you cared and I wasn't used to that. But the more time we spent together the more I realized that I was oh so in love with you Blaine Anderson. I'll let you in on a little secret though; you were totally worth the wait."

The voices of his friends from New Directions blended in with the Warblers as they sang the next chorus of the song. " _This night is flawless, don't you let it go. I'm wonderstruck, dancing round all alone. I spent forever wondering if you knew, I was enchanted to meet you. This is me praying that, this was the very first page, not where the storyline ends. My thoughts will echo your name until I see you again; these are the words I held back as I was leaving too soon. I was enchanted to meet you_."

Quinn's soft voice broke out in a soft chorus of, " _please don't be in love with someone else, please don't have somebody waiting on you._ "

The two groups came back together once again. " _This night is sparkling don't you let it go. I'm wonderstruck blushing all the way home. I spent forever wondering if you knew. This night is flawless, don't you let it go. I'm wonderstruck, dancing round all alone. I spent forever wondering if you knew, I was enchanted to meet you_."

The voices quieted as Kurt and Blaine slowly finished waltzing around the floor, eyes locked on one another. A small tear ran down Kurt's cheek as they stilled. Blaine ran his thumb up Kurt's jawline before wiping the tear away and pulling Kurt into a kiss. Blaine's lips found Kurt's and it felt as if they were kissing for the very first time once again. A small shock ran down Blaine's spine as Kurt's fingers grasped the hairs at the base of Blaine's neck, pulling them even closer together. Blaine ran a tongue into Kurt's mouth, softly touching Kurt's tongue with his own.

Blaine wasn't sure how long they stood in the embrace, neither willing to let go of the other at the moment. Finally they reluctantly pulled away and were met with cheering and whistling from most in attendance. Kurt wiped a few more tears from his eyes as the DJ started up the Cha-Cha Slide and the dance floor was flooded.

* * *

Kurt and Blaine stood in the gazebo, smiling as Carole and Rachel snapped what felt like the ten millionth picture of the night. The five tiered cake was decorated with silver and while flowers connected by pale green stems. Kurt was a bit shocked to see that the normal cake topper he had purchased had been replaced with two different figures, one a bit taller than the other, both wearing navy and red. Kurt noticed that his figure was wearing a sweater while Blaine's was dressed in his blazer. Kurt gave a small laugh as he realized that the two articles of clothing were in fact, hanging side by side in the closet he and Blaine shared.

After Rachel had finally finished blinding them with her flash Kurt cut two pieces of cake, sliding them onto napkins. He picked one up, as Blaine mirrored him. They linked arms and as Kurt was holding his piece up for Blaine he suddenly found himself with icing being smushed onto his nose. "Blaine!" he gasped before pressing his own piece into the side of Blaine's face.

"No fair!" Blaine exclaimed, trying to turn his face away managing to only get a blue streak across his nose. Kurt grinned wickedly before leaning in and licking the tip of Blaine's nose with the tip of his tongue, tasting the sweet icing mixed with the taste of Blaine's skin.

"Hey now, save it for the honeymoon!" Trent yelled out and was followed by "wanky" from Santana.

Blaine wiped the icing off of Kurt's face and laughed as Kurt tried to hide a smile. He picked up the matching champagne flutes, both crystal with their names and the date engraved on them, and handed one to Kurt. The looped their arms once again and drank, the clicking of cameras steadily going. Kurt set his glass back down on the table and whispered "we'll have enough pictures of our wedding to fill five scrapbooks when they're done" into Blaine's ear.

"At least they're not coming on our honeymoon" Blaine grinned.

"Oh god, I would throw myself off the tallest building of wherever we're going." Kurt was still a bit sore that Blaine wouldn't tell him where he had booked their honeymoon for. Tomorrow when they boarded the plane he'd find out, but it still irked him.

"I wouldn't let you."

* * *

The night was drawing to a close; the few hours Blaine had booked the room for were slowly coming to an end. Kurt was seated at a table, nursing a flute of champagne while Blaine was off preparing for some surprise. Kurt didn't know how to feel about this. He never really was one for surprises and especially not with it being his wedding night.

A flurry of movement caught his eye as the DJ slowly lowered the volume of the music and picked up his microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen, can you please vacate the dance floor as the Dalton Academy Warblers perform a number for us." Everyone grinned as they moved off the square of floor and the Warblers slowly filled in. Kurt still had no clue what was going on and Blaine was still missing, but before he could question anyone the Warblers broke out into a harmony he knew way to well.

A soft dum dum dum dum dum dum dum started and Kurt would have rolled his eyes if it weren't for the tears forming in them. The group of Warblers swaying to their harmony, split as Blaine walked between them, blazer and all. Kurt took in the grey pants that pulled a bit more in the thighs, the starched white shirt that stretched just a bit more across the shoulders, the blazer and tie Blaine had worn the first time they'd had sex in their apartment, and, oh sweet lord, Blaine had even gelled his hair as he used to at Dalton.

Blaine took over his position in front of the Warblers as he began to sing. " _You think I'm pretty without any makeup on. You think I'm funny when I tell the punch line wrong. I know you get me so I let my walls come down, down. Before you met me I was alright but things were kind of heavy, you brought me to life. Now every February you'll be my valentine. Valentine. Let's go all, the way tonight, no regrets, just love. We can dance until we die you and I we'll be young forever. You make me feel like I'm living a teenage dream, the way you turn me on. I can't sleep, let's run away and don't ever look back, don't ever look back. My heart stops when you look at me. Just one touch, now baby I believe, this is real so take a chance and don't ever look back, don't ever look back."_

Blaine danced around in front of the Warblers, remembering every step of the dance, but his eyes never leaving Kurt.

" _We drove to Cali and got drunk on the beach. Got a motel and built a fort out of sheets. I finally found you, my missing puzzle piece, I'm complete. Let's go all, the way tonight, no regrets, just love. We can dance until we die, you and I we'll be young forever. You make me feel like I'm living a teenage dream, the way you turn me on. I can't sleep, let's run away and don' ever look back, don't ever look back. My heart stops when you look at me. Just one touch, now baby I believe this is real so take a chance and don't ever look back, don't ever look back."_

Blaine smirked before settling himself right in front of Kurt before delivering the next line, swaying his hips in what he hoped was a really good Elvis impersonation.

" _I'm a get your heart racing in my skin tight jeans, be your teenage dream tonight, let you put your hands on me in my skin tight jeans, be your teenage dream tonight. You make me feel like I'm living a teenage dream, the way you turn me on. I can't sleep, let's run away and don' ever look back, don't ever look back. My heart stops when you look at me. Just one touch, now baby I believe this is real so take a chance and don't ever look back, don't ever look back."_

All Kurt knew as he watched Blaine try to seduce him was that if they didn't get out of the reception hall soon and get to their hotel suite then everyone in attendance were going to get to see Kurt put his hands on Blaine and show him a better reason to thrust his hips. He thanked anyone listening that the number was over and sent an angry look in his husband's direction.

Blaine smirked as he watched Kurt glare at him while simultaneously attempting to hide how much Blaine had just turned him on, no pun intended. He had hoped that Kurt would like the new and improved 'Teenage Dream' performance and judging by the awkward way Kurt was trying to cross his legs, Kurt  _really_ enjoyed it.

* * *

Nick high-fived Jeff as they entered the changing room, all of the Warblers laughing at how well the performance had turned out. "Blaine definitely got his point across" Thad laughed as he slung his blazer across a chair.

"Yeah, I'll bet Kurt won't be able to stand up for the next twenty minutes" Wes grinned at his friends.

They all applauded as Blaine entered the room, grinning, his blazer thrown haphazardly across his shoulder. He sank into a chair "well?"

There was a small commotion as almost all of the guys tried to talk at once. Finally the tumult calmed and Blaine was able to speak again. "So you think he got it?"

"Blaine, he's actually pretty smart, I think the only person  _not_ to get it was Finn, and even then, I'm pretty sure his hanging jaw proved that even he caught on. So go, on, get out there, say your last few words and take him to the honeymoon suite I know you booked three weeks ago." To accentuate his words, Wes pulled Blaine to his feet and pushed him out the door.

* * *

Kurt was sitting in the seat across from Finn who was berating him with questions about their honeymoon. "For the thousandth time Finn, I know as much as you do. He won't tell me anything and you of all people should know how much I hate that."

"So you're just going to get on a plane and go wherever he has planned? What if it's like Oklahoma or something?"

Kurt really wanted to smack Finn sometimes. "Finn, I'm ninety nine point nine percent positive Blaine is  _not_ taking me to Oklahoma for our honeymoon, but if he is he can kiss his balls goodbye."

"I swear on my guitar I'm not taking you to Oklahoma." Blaine said as he walked up, resting a hand on Kurt's shoulder. "It's time to head out babe, ready to say our goodbyes?"

"Yeah. Carole promised to gather all the wedding gifts and keep them away from Finn until we get back from wherever."

They gathered their friends and family, thanking them all for coming and wishing them a safe night. Kurt was promising to call Carole and get her a gift from wherever they ended up. He turned and saw Blaine hugging his mom, a tear rolling down his cheek.

"Thanks for being here mom, I- I didn't expect you to come."

She pulled her son into her embrace. "Blaine, I wouldn't miss it for the world. I bet your father would be proud of you."

Blaine's eyes darkened at the mention of his father. "No he wouldn't" Blaine spat. "He would have sat there and told me how much of a disgrace to the Anderson name I was. You know what he said to me, even when he was dying." Blaine felt an arm rest on his and turned to see Kurt. "I love you mom, I do, and I'm glad you came, I'm glad you shared this with me. Now I'm going to go take my wonderful husband on the honeymoon of a lifetime." He hugged his mother once more before grasping Kurt's arm and leading him out the door.


	20. Honeymoon

Blaine left Kurt sitting in a plush armchair in the lobby as he went to check-in at the hotel he had book for the night. He was getting a bit nervous. True, they had slept together before, but this was different, this was the first night they'd be together after being married and Blaine was nervous as hell. He wanted everything to be perfect. He'd planned the trip that started tomorrow for a while, had been planning it since before they graduated Dalton in fact.

He smiled at the desk clerk who handed him the key to the suite. She motioned towards the elevators, rattling off the hours for the pool and continental breakfast, neither of which Blaine was interested in. He walked towards Kurt and smiled when he saw him twisting the small silver band around his finger. "Second thoughts?" he grinned, placing a hand on Kurt's shoulder.

Smiling, Kurt looked up at him. "Never in a million years. Did you get all checked in?"

"Yeah" he took Kurt's hand leading him towards the elevators. He hoped that the silence from Kurt's direction meant that he was as nervous as Blaine was. The doors slid shut with a metallic grating sound and Blaine's hand tightened around Kurt's. What did you say at a time like this? Luckily Blaine wasn't left wondering in silence when Kurt finally spoke up.

"Tonight was wonderful, you did an amazing job."

"Coming from you that's a huge compliment" Blaine laughed, kissing the tip of Kurt's nose.

"I mean, it, everything was wonderful."

"It was. I'm so glad I got to share it with you. Oh, did you enjoy our mew version of 'Teenage Dream'?"

Kurt glared at Blaine before answering. "If you ever pull a stunt like that again I will kill you."

"What?" Blaine asked, feigning innocence. "You didn't like it?"

"Making me want to jump you in the middle of our reception in front of my father was not your smartest move."

"You loved it" Blaine smirked as the doors slid open to the top floor of the hotel. He pulled Kurt along to the end of the hall where their suite was. He unlocked the door with trembling fingers, taking him twice to get the door to unlock. He kicked the door open and turned, sweeping Kurt up in his arms. "Put me down!" Kurt yelled, thrashing around.

"Simmer down" Blaine grinned before tossing Kurt onto the king sized bed in the middle of the room.

Kurt did his best to look offended. "You manhandled me on our wedding night!"

"You liked it" Blaine laughed as he climbed onto the bed, straddling Kurt. He pressed a soft kiss to Kurt's lips, slipping a hand into the silky strands of hair. Kurt tugged on his lapels, trying to pull Blaine closer. Blaine pressed another soft kiss to Kurt's lips before moving off of Kurt and the bed.

Kurt whined as the presence of Blaine left. "Hey, come back. Where are you going?"

"Out on the balcony, come join me."

Kurt rolled off the bed and followed the retreating form on his husband out onto the balcony. He sucked in a sharp breath as he took in the view. Lights from all over the city were glittering against the black night sky. He watched the red and white lights of cars traveling across the city in streams. He heard Blaine reenter the hotel room and soon heard the soft crooning voice of Elvis singing softly in the background. Blaine returned with two glasses of champagne, setting them on the small glass table next to them. As Elvis continued singing in the background, Blaine took a hold of Kurt's hand, pulling the taller boy towards him.

Kurt let his head rest on Blaine's shoulder, the height difference making it just slightly uncomfortable. They stood there swaying back and forth in silence, holding on to one another. They stayed like that for a while, content in the silence together, words not needing to be spoken.

Blaine pulled away at last, pressing a soft kiss on Kurt's lips once again. He'd never get tired of kissing Kurt. When they were ninety years old he'd still revel in the way that Kurt's lips felt against his own. He let go of Kurt's hand, picking up the glasses of champagne, offering one to Kurt.

They stood there, sipping the drinks and watching the moon rise brightly into the sky. "It's beautiful" Kurt breathed.

"I know you are."

Kurt turned to face Blaine who was watching him, a small smile playing on his lips. "You aren't too shabby looking yourself Mr. Anderson."

"Hummel-Anderson" Blaine reminded him, his eyes never leaving Kurt's face. He pulled Kurt to him with his free hand, kissing him hard but sweet, tasting the champagne on his mouth. "God I love you."

"Love you too" Kurt whispered before kissing Blaine back, wrapping a hand into his curls, pulling him closer, kissing him hungrily.

* * *

They tumbled backwards onto the bed together, mouths never leaving each other. Kurt landed with a small 'oof' as Blaine fell on top of him. Kurt pushed the tux jacket off of Blaine's shoulders and let it slide to the floor. Kurt himself had lost his own jacket somewhere between the balcony and the bed and Blaine was now attacking the bowtie around his neck.

Kurt nimbly untied Blaine's tie and threw it to the ground on top of the jacket before reaching for the buttons of his shirt. He briefly struggled with the cummerbund before jerking it and Blaine's shirt off and tossing them to the floor. Blaine had added Kurt's shirt and belt to the ever-growing pile of clothes and was working on kissing every inch of exposed skin he could.

Blaine kissed the hollow of Kurt's throat, eliciting a soft moan from the boy beneath him. Kurt thrust upwards into Blaine, trying to get friction. He kissed Kurt's shoulders and collarbones, working his way down Kurt's chest before lapping at Kurt's nipple and teasing it with his teeth. Kurt moaned louder, his hands trying desperately to undo Blaine's trousers, wanting and needing to be pressed skin to skin. Blaine grinned wickedly before allowing Kurt to slide off his trousers, adding them to the pile before working on Kurt's pants and letting them fall with his. Blaine rocked back onto his heels, staring down at Kurt's perfect body. He bent his head down and pressed a soft kiss to the flat stomach and worked his way upwards.

He kissed the sweet skin, breathing in the scent of vanilla and cologne. He licked along Kurt's side, across his ribs, softly blowing on the damp skin, setting Kurt's nerves to tingling. He worked his way up, stopping to take one nipple at a time into his mouth, licking and sucking until they were both swollen and pink.

Kurt was panting and moaning beneath him, his erection visible through the boxer briefs he had on. Blaine was hard too, but he wanted this to last, wanted it to be special, to be perfect. He captured Kurt's mouth in a hot searing kiss, their tongues tangling together.

Kurt ran his hands along Blaine's body, reveling in the feel of his taut back muscles, the strong arms he was propped up on. He kissed the arm that was next to his head, the taste of salty sweat mixing with Blaine's own taste. He slid a hand between their bodies, slowly stroking Blaine who moaned deeply into Kurt's mouth.

Blaine pressed downward into Kurt's hand, unable to stop himself. His hips rolled forward of their own accord, finding the needed friction of Kurt's hand. Blaine pulled back and fumbled with his boxers, almost falling off the bed when they tangled around his foot.

He slid his fingers into the waistband of Kurt's boxer briefs, staring hungrily as he slid them off Kurt's toned body. He sat and stared, relishing the pale skin beneath him, contrasting beautifully with his own tanned skin.

Blaine slid down to the edge of the bed, grabbing one of Kurt's feet and began to massage it. He worked each of Kurt's toes between his fingers, moving to stroke the arch. Kurt wiggled a bit, the touch tickling the sole of his foot. Blaine kissed each of Kurt's toes tenderly then worked his way along the bottom and sides, taking care to cover every inch.

Once he was finished with the left foot he moved to the right, giving it the same amount of care and attention as the first. After lavishing his attention on Kurt's feet, watching as Kurt relaxed into the pillows, he began kissing his way past Kurt's ankles, up his calves and to his thighs. He kissed each hip bone in turn, nuzzling his way across and up Kurt's stomach and rib cage, pausing to suck red marks onto the pale skin every now and then.

Kurt's breathing was hitching as he watched Blaine make his way up his body. No one had ever taken care of him like this and it was the most wonderful feeling in the world. Every touch of Blaine's hand sent shivers down Kurt's spine; every place Blaine kissed was as if it had been set on fire.

Blain paused, his hot breath ghosting across Kurt's tingling skin, sending every impulse straight to Kurt's cock. Kurt watched with lust-filled eyes as Blaine lowered his head, slowly licking along the side of Kurt's cock from base to head. He swirled his tongue around the top, lapping at the small slit at the top. Blaine made a low humming sound as he wrapped a hand around Kurt, felling and tasting him at the same time.

Blaine slowly let go of Kurt's cock and slid back up the slender body, pressing a kiss to Kurt's lips. Kurt let out a small whimper at the loss of Blaine on his cock, but slowly moaned as Blaine continued kissing him, sliding a lubed finger into his ass.

Kurt arched into Blaine, needing Blaine closer and deeper. His breathing increased as the pace of Blaine's finger increased. Blaine slid in another finger, kissing Kurt hard, his free hand gripping Kurt's side. Blaine added another finger and hooked them, hitting the spot that caused Kurt to moan obscenities.

Kurt rocked against Blaine's hand, needing more and needing it now. "Please Blaine" he breathed into Blaine's ear, pressing up against him. Blaine pulled his fingers out, cutting off Kurt's whine with his mouth.

Blaine rubbed a liberal amount of lube onto his cock, as he lined himself up with Kurt's entrance. He slowly slid into Kurt, his hazel eyes locking on Kurt's clear blue ones. He slid in, waited a moment for Kurt to adjust and then slowly began to slide in and out of the man beneath him.

Blaine leaned over, kissing Kurt as he continued to move inside him. "I could make love you to every night for the rest of our lives and never get tired of it" he hummed into Kurt's ear.

Kurt kissed him back, the warmth and love in that one simple kiss enough to show Blaine that he felt the same way. Kurt gripped Blaine's arms, holding onto him as if he were an anchor in the sea of emotion flooding through him.

Blaine rocked slowly, continuously kissing Kurt, the rising sensation of his orgasm slowly building. He wouldn't rush, would let it slowly build, let the soft buzzing in his ears get louder with each thrust, the simple idea that he was  _making love_ to his  _husband_ enough for him.

They stayed like that for a while, mouths locked, Blaine rocking into Kurt until their orgasms surged forwards. Blaine came first, calling out Kurt's name as he did. Kurt followed, gasping for air and Blaine's name breaking past his lips.

Blaine collapsed next to Kurt, arms weak as he rolled to the side, pressing against Kurt's body. "I love you" he softly whispered into the air.

"I love you too Blaine" Kurt said, his face breaking into a huge grin.

* * *

"You can't just hand me a ticket to Tulsa, Oklahoma and expect me to get on the plane with you Blaine Anderson!" Kurt was making a scene but he didn't care. There was no way in hell he was going to Oklahoma for his honeymoon.

"Trust me, it isn't our final stop. Please just get on the plane babe." Blaine was looking at Kurt frantically, trying to get him to board the plane. "It's First-Class and everything. I promise."

Kurt let out a small huff of air to show Blaine that he wasn't pleased with the arrangements but he finally boarded the plane. He dropped into the padded leather seat and stared out the window next to him. Blaine slid his hand onto Kurt's lap, holding Kurt's hand.

"Please don't be mad babe. I promise you'll like where we're going."

"Is it out of the country?"

"If I say yes will you love me?"

"I already do, but I  _will_ stop pouting if you say yes."

"Then yes."

"You're not just saying that to shut me up are you?" Kurt raised a delicate eyebrow, piercing Blaine with his blue eyes.

"I promise we are leaving the United States to go on our honeymoon."

* * *

Kurt stared out the window of the plane as they dipped through the clouds. Although he had sat staring at his ticket in shock for the past 16 hours, he was still amazed to be flying into Paris, France, the city of love. "Look" he said in a barely audible whisper, grabbing Blaine's arm and shaking him awake.

"We land?" Blaine asked, looking around confused.

"No, but look, we're in Paris!" Kurt's enthusiasm shone on his face. His blue eyes sparkled with excitement, drinking in the city from the sky.

Blaine smiled, watching as Kurt grew more excited with every passing moment. "So where to first? Le Champs-Elysees?"

"Yes. No. I don't know. Didn't you make an itinerary or something?"

Blaine shook his head at his husband. "Of course, I just wanted to make sure you were happy."

Kurt paused for a moment before taking Blaine's hand in his own. I'm in  _Paris_ with my  _husband_ on our  _honeymoon_. We could order room service and cheap wine every night and I'd be perfectly happy."

"You are the worst liar ever Kurt Hummel-Anderson. You would be devastated if I told you those were my plans."

Kurt held up a hand in surrender. "Fine, fine you've got me! But still, if it meant spending time with you then I would be happy. Since I know you better than that why don't you tell me what you have planned while the plane finishes its descent?"

"Well, we have the Eiffel Tower and Arch De Triomphe of course. We're joining a tour for a day to go see Versailles. I also planned in some time to just walk around the city, visit boutiques, that sort of thing. There's also a surprise for our last night here, so just keep that in mind."

"You and your surprises" Kurt sighed. "I like it though, keeps me on my toes."

* * *

They checked into the hotel, Kurt surprised at the amount of French Blaine spoke fluently. "I took French for four years and I wouldn't be able to speak it that well."

"Private lessons," Blaine said, rolling his eyes. "Starting at the age of five my parents had a tutor come. I also speak fluent Spanish and Italian and a bit of German as well."

"Why did you have to learn all of those though?"

"It was expected of me. Most of the kids in our community spoke three or four different languages by age ten."

Kurt loved French but he shuddered at the thought of having to be tutored in it from such an early age.

They entered the small elevator, pressing the button for the top floor. The elevator slid open moments later and the couple exited, pulling their suitcases down the hallway to their suite.

Blaine slid the keycard into the slot, pushing the door open as soon as the light flashed green. "Après vous, mon amour." He smiled, sweeping his hand in front of him, holding the door for Kurt.

Kurt walked into the room, taking in the periwinkle walls and walking to the balcony. He opened sliding glass door and stepped out into the cool air. He leaned against the wrought iron railing, looking out onto the city. He watched people bustle down the street, entering and exiting the small boutiques. In the distance he could see the Seine and the Eiffel Tower. It seemed like a dream to him, he was in Paris.

Blaine joined Kurt on the balcony, resting his hand on top of Kurt's and leaning into the taller boy's shoulder. "I love it here. One of the few cities I find completely relaxing."

* * *

They were strolling past the river having just finished dinner. Blaine had taken Kurt to a small restaurant that was fairly tourist free and they sat and dined by the candlelight. Kurt decided to let Blaine order; glad he had done so as he finished off the succulent lamb.

Now they were walking hand in hand down the street, watching the ripples in the water.

"I have to admit," Kurt smiled, "this is much better than Oklahoma."

Blaine laughed, his eyes twinkling. "Told you so, I can't believe you'd think I'd do that."

"I never know with you babe."

* * *

The next day dawned bright and clear. Blaine and Kurt headed for the bus that would take them to Versailles. Kurt yawned as they found their seats and promptly fell asleep on Blaine's shoulder. Blaine smiled down at the sleeping boy, pulling out his iPod and a book.

Kurt stirred at about nine, yawning and stretching in the seat. He looked out the window at the French landscape whizzing past them. He turned to Blaine who was immersed in his book. Kurt pulled out an ear bud and was greeted with classical music. He listened for a moment before realizing he was listening to a cover of 'Don't Stop Believing''.

"Morning sleepyhead" Blaine mumbled, glancing up from his book before pressing a quick kiss to Kurt's cheek.

"Some of us didn't have time for coffee."

"Some of us didn't try on five hundred outfits and almost missed the bus."

Kurt pouted and rolled his eyes. "Well, you should have had my coffee ready. What good are you?"

"You married me for a reason Mister Hummel-Anderson. Plus, I'm not bad at  _everything_."

Kurt flushed slightly as the night before came rushing into his mind. "You tell yourself that  _Mister Hummel-Anderson_." Kurt quipped back.

"I don't have to, you tell me every night."

"Oh my god I married a teenager. I think I'm going home and filing for divorce."

"No you aren't you love me too much." Blaine threw in the face that always melted Kurt.

"Not the face Blaine. Fine, ok I love you."

Blaine smiled at his triumph and settled back in his seat.

* * *

Blaine smiled at Kurt whose face was plastered against the bus window. Kurt reminded him of himself the first time he came to Versailles.

" _Blaine honey, look there it is ahead of us." Blaine pressed his nose against the window, squinting into the sunlight as they approached the palace. "Mommy, can we live there?" Blaine asked, pulling on his mother's sleeve. Cassandra Anderson smiled at her son, laughing at the eagerness in his wide hazel eyes. "What do you think Benton? Can we afford Versailles?" Benton smiled at Blaine, ruffling the young boy's hair. "Sorry son, I think it's just out of our price range."_

"Blaine are you ok?" Kurt's voice broke into the memory and Blaine felt Kurt's soft fingers wipe away a tear.

"Yeah. I just, I was just remembering the first time I saw Versailles. I asked mom and dad if we could live there. I couldn't stop thinking about how epic a hide and seek game would be in there. That, that was before everything went downhill."

Kurt placed his hand on top of Blaine's, squeezing slightly. Blaine rarely talked about his childhood and though Kurt was curious, he never pressed for information.

"Anyway" Blaine said, shaking his head, "welcome to Versailles."

Kurt looked out the window as the palace came in view. It was a magnificent structure. Lines of windows wrapped around the U-shaped building. He bounced excitedly in his seat, feeling much like a five year old himself.

* * *

They walked from room to room, Blaine translating for Kurt as the tour guide droned on in French. Kurt stared at the walls, the gilded panels and immense paintings breathtaking in their own ways. He smiled as he walked across the floors, hand clenched tightly in Blaine's.

Kurt stood staring into the case that held the crown jewels for a while. Just watching the light refract off of the rubies and emeralds made him want them more than anything else.

* * *

The Louvre was huge, that was Kurt's first opinion. After being drug around to see the Mona Lisa and mummies he was ready to stop for a moment or two. Blaine had other ideas though as he pulled Kurt through the streets of Paris.

Night was falling; the stars were shining in the night sky as they made their way down the street. Kurt took in the lights of the city as they stood beneath the Eiffel Tower. It was beautiful at night, the entire thing lit up and twinkling against the navy blue sky. They entered the elevator along with a few other couples and Kurt gripped Blaine's hand as it began rising.

They stood silently at the top momentarily silent, Blaine's head resting on Kurt's shoulder. "It's beautiful" Kurt breathed, the lights of the city twinkling in his eyes.

"Not as beautiful as you" Blaine smiled up at Kurt, pressing a soft kiss to the bottom of his jawline. Kurt kept himself from rolling his eyes at how cliché they sounded right now and reminded himself that hey, he was on his honeymoon.

"Come on," Blaine spoke, tugging lightly on Kurt's hand. "We're going to be late."

* * *

"A cruise on the Seine? You thought of everything didn't you?"

"I told you, I wanted this trip to be perfect" Blaine answered as they began boarding the boat. They found seats in the first row, Blaine's propensity of always being early had its perks at times.

The lights from the streets and bridges glistened on the water as the boat glided through the water. The tour guide talked about the different bridges and streets, intertwining dull history with fascinating stories. Paris truly was the city of love. Everything seemed to be romanticized, but nothing was overly done or cliché.

* * *

"It's our last night in Paris" Blaine said, holding up a bottle of champagne. "Can you believe a week has gone by already?"

Kurt stood by the door to the balcony, looking out at the streets below. Turning, he answered, "no, it feels like we just arrived here yesterday. I'm going to miss it."

"We'll be back before you know it. Or maybe we could go to Spain for our anniversary?"

"Spain does seem lovely."

Blaine poured a glass of champagne for both of them and handed one to Kurt toasting him. "To our future."

Kurt raised his glass, "to our future."


	21. Epilogue

Blaine woke slowly, blinking his eyes in the sunlight streaming through the slats of the blinds. He rolled into the soft warmth of Kurt and slid a hand around the taller boy's waist. He could do this every day and thanked his lucky stars he'd be able to. Suddenly his iPhone was beeping on the nightstand and he rolled over and glanced at it. The alarm that he had set made him gasp loudly and he dropped the phone onto the table before shaking Kurt.

"Mmph, five more minutes." Kurt burrowed back into the pillow, protesting against Blaine's shaking.

"Kurt today is very important to us and I suggest that you get your butt out of bed."

"What's so important that I can't finish my beauty sleep?" Kurt rolled over to Blaine and cracked an eye open.

"Did you really forget where we're meant to be in oh, forty minutes?"

Realization hit Kurt and he jumped out of bed, grabbing clothes from a drawer and putting them on hastily. "Why didn't you say that sooner? Blaine we can't be late, they'll think we're irresponsible and that will not be a good start to our review!"

Blaine smiled as he rolled out of bed, his feet hitting the hardwood floor of their new house. "Trust me babe, we won't be late."

* * *

Twenty minutes later the pair was parking and entering the building where their life could be changed forever.

"Mr. and Mr. Hummel-Anderson, I'm glad you could make it, punctuality means a lot to us." Samantha Green shook each of their hands in turn and settled behind her desk while motioning to the chairs in front of her. "I've reviewed your file and application and everything seems to be in order there. All that's left is for me to ask a few preliminary questions and then we'll get to the important stuff. So, how long have you two been married?"

Kurt took ahold of Blaine's hand, intertwining their fingers before answering, "Three years now, three wonderful years."

Samantha jotted it down as she continued on, "I see both of you are employed on Broadway. How often are you forced into late nights or early mornings?"

"It happens very rarely, actually," Blaine answered. "We both have leading rolls and our casts are competent. Usually we'll have one late night rehearsal and early morning the day or two before an opening night."

"Mhmm, how do you think your fame would affect a child if you adopted?"

"We would treat our son or daughter with the utmost care. While our jobs are important to us, our family comes first."

"Thank you Kurt, one final question, if anything happened to one of you, would you be able to continue to care for your child and would you want to?"

"Of course," Blaine answered. 'Like Kurt said, family comes first, and neither of us would have a problem supporting a child on our own."

"Well then, I figured there would be no problems with this interview, your application was enough to let us come to a decision. Congratulations Mr. and Mr. Hummel-Anderson, you have been approved to adopt."

Kurt's eyes widened and he clasped onto Blaine for support. Their dream was finally coming true. They had applied for an adoption request a couple of months ago and were excited yet nervous for this interview. They had their eyes set on a little boy named Ryan who had been orphaned when his parents died in a car wreck. Now everything had finally fallen into place.

"Mr. and Mr. Hummel-Anderson, we'll need you to fill out a few forms involving Ryan and then we'll bring him out to you. I had him brought here from the foster home so you could take him with you today. Samantha slid a few sheets of paper over that had all of their information on it so that the men could sign saying that they promised to take full care and responsibility of their new three-year old son.

As soon as Blaine had signed his name a final time, Casey was leading in the small red head by the hand. Samantha took the boy from Casey's grip and introduced him to his new fathers. "Ryan, this is Kurt and Blaine Hummel-Anderson, they're going to be your new parents."

The boy cocked his head before running over to Kurt and hugging him around the knees. He let go of Kurt and turned to Blaine, holding out his arms and chanting "up, up" until Blaine swept him up into his arms, tousling the boy's hair. Samantha stepped over to the family and shook Blaine and Kurt's hands. "Take good care of Ryan for me, he's a good kid. Thank you so much sirs, have a great life."

* * *

Kurt tucked Ryan into the child seat Blaine had installed into the car before they left, they had hoped to bring Ryan home with them and were glad they weren't taking an empty seat back instead. The boy was quiet on the ride home, watching the city slowly turn into suburbs as they drove farther away from the city. Blaine pulled into the driveway of a rambling two story home they had purchased just over the New Jersey line. The yard was large enough that Ryan could run around without having to worry about running into fences. A tire swing that Kurt and Blaine had tired into the large oak tree in front swung slightly in the breeze.

Blaine carried a sleepy Ryan up into his room that was decorated with Kurt's precise hand. Energy seemed to leap into the boy as he took in all of the toys that now belonged to him. He jumped on the bed, wrinkling the Toy Story comforter Blaine had insisted they buy. "This is so cool!" Ryan screeched, jumping from the bed to the floor and running around the room. Blaine folded his arms and leaned against Kurt, smiling, "I think he likes it."

Kurt made dinner while Blaine took Ryan outside, pushing the boy on the tire swing higher and higher, eyes crinkling in laughter as the wind whipped through his hair. They kicked a soccer ball around the yard for a bit, Blaine barely brushing it with his foot while Ryan tore off after it to toss it back at his father.

* * *

Ryan had assimilated into their family easily, not once questioning why he had two dads, merely calling Kurt 'daddy' and Blaine 'papa'. Blaine and Kurt adored the child, taking him wherever they went. One particular night that Blaine was fond of remembering was their first outing to the movies. There was a new Disney movie that Ryan would point at the TV and laugh at every time it had come on, so it didn't take much convincing to get his daddy and papa to take him to see it. Ryan had sat there in complete silence, absolutely absorbed in the movie while his little hands dug into the popcorn bucket. On the way home he had asked for ice cream and Kurt, surprisingly obliged the boy's request.

Of course, they had a few surprises on the way. Blaine and Kurt had sent out invitations for Ryan's fifth birthday and Rachel was helping set everything up at the last minute, seeing as Blaine and Kurt had had a busy week with their separate shows. The doorbell rang and Blaine hurried to open it, figuring it was Burt and Carole. He stopped and grinned though as he took in the small group of men gathered on his doorstep. He hadn't seen so much red and blue since his wedding and grinned as Nick led the group in. "You don't think we'd miss your little boy's fifth birthday party do you?" Wes grinned as he handed a present to Blaine.

The party had gone smoothly; Ryan's friends from school were playing in the backyard under the careful eye of Burt and Carole while Blaine and Kurt sat inside catching up with their high school friends.

"Nice place you guys have," Jeff commented, leaning against Nick on the couch.

"Well we couldn't have Ryan grow up just anywhere now could we?" Kurt grinned from the loveseat.

"So, how's he doing in school?" Trent questioned, looking up from the mantle where pictures of Kurt, Blaine, and Ryan stood lined up neatly.

"Well," Blaine smiled, "he has good marks on all of his homework and tests, but we're a little concerned about him having friends."

"Who are all these kids running around the yard then?" Wes grinned.

"I mean, they're all friends right now, but I'm worried about when they get older. Kindergarteners don't care much about who's who, but Ryan mentioned something to Kurt the other night about a second grader mocking him for having two fathers." Blaine looked at his friends sadly, wishing they lived in a different society that didn't care if you were gay or gray.

"Hey," Trent reassured, "you two are the best fathers any kid could ask for. Plus, he'll be fine, he has a magnetic personality, I'm sure all the girls will love him."

"I know, it's just hard."

The group of men turned to see Ryan chasing another boy and grinning from ear to ear. They all laughed as a little girl that Blaine knew as Susie tripped Ryan and sent him sprawling to the ground before pasting on a sweet smile and helping him up.

"Like Trent said," Nick grinned, "he'll have all the girls in no time."

The room was filled with laughter as Kurt and Blaine's eyes lit up as they watched their child play. "So," Blaine grinned, turning to the two men seated opposite of him, "Nick, when you plan on actually marrying Jeff?"


End file.
